(4 Apr 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Brussels – 4 April 2025
1. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arriving at NATO Headquarters, gets asked by child reporter to answer a question, walks towards children UPSOUND (English):
Child: "Good morning, Mr. Rubio. Can I ask you a question?"
Rubio: "Sure. Can you wait until I walk out, because I’m late for a meeting? What’s your question? I gotta do this, come on. But not with these guys (showing reporters), only with you."
Child: "Are you going to make friends today?"
Rubio: "Yes. We always make friends. We have friends here. We are always trying to make friends. These are long-time friends and people we’ve worked with for a very long time, and that will continue to happen. We have got some differences of opinion, but friends have differences of opinions, so. But we’ll work through them, because the important things matter to us."
Child: "And what is your message for young people in NATO countries?"
Rubio: "That NATO is stronger than it’s ever been. It’s going to continue to get stronger, because all the countries in NATO are going to spend more money and have more capabilities. So we’re going to be a stronger partnership, because our partners are going be stronger."
Child: "Thank you very much. Can we have a high five?"
Rubio: "Hold on. Hold on, it’s awesome. Bye. Do they pay you to do this? Make sure they pay. You guys are better than these guys (showing journalists). Thank you. Thank you so much. Have a great day."
Rubio walks away
STORYLINE:
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that there are differences of opinion amongst NATO allies but that they can work through them as he attended the second day of a NATO Foreign Affairs Ministers meeting in Brussels on Friday.
Asked on his way in by child journalists invited by a Dutch television station if he was going to make friends, Rubio described the other NATO countries as long-time friends who can work through their differences, adding that "NATO is stronger than it has ever been."
"We have got some differences of opinion, but friends have differences of opinions," he told the children.
Rubio on Thursday decried “hysteria and hyperbole” in the media about U.S. President Donald Trump’s intentions, despite persistent signals from Washington that NATO as it has existed for 75 years may no longer be relevant.
Despite those words, European allies and Canada are deeply concerned by Trump’s readiness to draw closer to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who sees NATO as a threat as the U.S. tries to broker a ceasefire in Ukraine, as well as his rhetorical attacks and insults against allies like Canada and Denmark.
AP video by Ahmad Seir
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