Video: Rubio urges US-China talks to avoid ‘geopolitical malpractice’
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio
Abdullateef Fowewe
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called for renewed diplomatic engagement with China during a speech at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, warning that avoiding talks would amount to “geopolitical malpractice.”
Speaking amid rising tensions in great-power competition, Rubio struck a pragmatic note, acknowledging inevitable clashes but stressing peaceful navigation.
“It would be geopolitical malpractice not to engage in conversations with China,” he said in the address.
He added, “Our national interests will often not align; theirs will not align with ours. We expect China to act in its national interest, just as we expect every nation-state to act in its own.”
Rubio emphasised diplomacy’s core purpose noting, “The goal of diplomacy is to navigate the times when our national interests come into conflict, always striving to do so peacefully.”
The remarks signal a nuanced evolution from Rubio’s earlier hawkish stance on Beijing, aligning with recent US-China discussions on trade, tech, and security.
