Rubio to link ancient Greek values to ‘America First’ speech in Athens

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was expected on Wednesday to urge Western nations to embrace the ancient Greek values of “heroism, honor, and duty”, tying the ideals to President Donald Trump’s “America First” agenda. “It has become fashionable today to believe that enlightened foreign policy means prioritizing the ‘global community’ over one’s own people,” Rubio was to say, according to excerpts shared ahead of the speech by the State Department. “They knew that there was nothing selfish or wrong about loyalty to your nation, nor in fighting to defend its interests above all else.” Rubio, regarded as a leading contender for the Republican nomination to succeed Trump in 2028, chose to deliver his speech from the Pnyx, where ancient Athens’ popular assembly once met. Rubio’s speech echoes Vice President JD Vance’s February 2025 Munich Security Conference speech, which cast Europe’s challenges as a retreat from shared Western values and drew rebukes from the continent’s leaders. That was followed by Trump’s November 2025 National Security Strategy, which warned that Europe faced “civilization erasure” from migration and challenges to national sovereignty. “Today, we find ourselves at a crossroads. The next decade will write the story of the next century,” Rubio was due to say. “The course we take will determine whether the West maintains its place at the head of the world, or resigns itself to a future of atrophy, servitude, and decline.” “Under President Trump, the United States has made its choice,” Rubio was to add. “We choose the unapologetic pursuit of national power.” Rubio is visiting three European NATO allies, beginning in Iceland. Earlier on Wednesday, Rubio and his Greek counterpart reaffirmed close US-Greek security, energy and trade ties. He was to conclude the trip with talks with Portuguese officials on Thursday in Lisbon.