What did Marco Rubio say about China, Iran, Israel and Ukraine?

President-elect Donald Trump’s Sen. Marco Rubio as secretary of State, arguably the world’s most important diplomat, can change the dial when it comes to US relations with both enemies and allies.

Rubio, considered a foreign policy hawk, has been highly critical of China and Iran, considered the US’s top economic and geopolitical adversaries, but has also been ambivalent about his continued support for Ukraine, echoing Trump’s stance that war with Russia must come. . until the end.

A former vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, Rubio was tapped to be secretary of State by Trump late Wednesday as he assembled his top team for the White House after winning a decisive election last week.

“He will be a strong Advocate for our Nation, a true friend to our Allies, and a fearless Hero who will not back down against our enemies,” Trump said in a statement on the Truth Social platform.

Rubio’s nomination, along with his firm stance on foreign policy and criticism of America’s rivals, could ease concerns among US allies that the world’s most powerful economy could retreat from the global stage, due to Trump’s “America First” policy.

Before he was hit, and after Trump’s election win, Rubio told CNN that the US had entered an “era of pragmatic foreign policy.”

“The world is changing very quickly. You know, the enemies are united – in North Korea, Iran, China, Russia – (and) more and more coordinated,” Rubio said. “It will require us to be pragmatic and prudent in how we invest abroad and what we do.”

The relationship between Trump and Rubio has not always been easy. The two ran for president in 2016, feuding during the campaign for the Republican nomination with Trump describing Rubio as “Little Marco,” and Rubio calling Trump “little hands.”

At the time, Rubio was critical of Trump’s isolationist foreign policy stance. Back in 2016, he said “a world without American involvement is a world no one wants to live in,” contradicting Trump’s position that the US offers more than its interaction with the international community.

Rubio has since made peace with the president-elect, but supported him in his presidential campaign.

Rubio’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his new role, but here are excerpts from the 53-year-old politician’s comments on some of the biggest US foreign policy challenges, hinting at what to expect from the incoming secretary. from country:

“This report should be a wake-up call to lawmakers, CEOs, and investors,” Rubio said, calling for “everyone’s efforts to rebuild our country, overcome China’s challenges, and keep the torch of freedom burning for generations to come.”

There is no love lost for Rubio in Beijing. In 2020, Rubio and other US officials were sanctioned by China during tit-for-tat sanctions by Beijing and Washington.

It is uncertain how the Trump administration, and incoming Secretary of State Rubio, will approach Iran with both Republicans giving mixed signals when it comes to a punitive or more pragmatic policy stance.

Trump caused international consternation in his first term by tearing up the Iran nuclear deal in 2018 and reimposing tough sanctions on Iran, with critics warning that Iran’s nuclear weapons capability will be achieved sooner rather than later.

Before winning the election last week, Trump signaled that he was open to reaching a new nuclear agreement with Iran, but told reporters in New York, “of course, I will do it.” “We have to make a deal, because the consequences are impossible. We have to make a deal,” he said, in comments reported by Politico.

For his part, Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, said on Tuesday that the country “must deal with the US in the regional and international arena,” Reuters reported, signaling Iran may also open discussions.

The new nuclear deal may not have gone down well with Israel, but Trump’s country touted itself as a “protector” during the election campaign. Rubio has also been a vocal critic of Iran and a strong supporter of Israel as it continues to attack Iran’s proxies, the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah, in Gaza and Lebanon.

In late September, Rubio expressed his support for the Israeli airstrike that killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, telling NBC News that “Israel has no choice but to defend itself. Killing not only Nasrallah, but the senior leaders of this evil organization, I think, is a service for mankind.” He also said that Iran’s goal in the Middle East is to “seek to drive America out of the region and destroy Israel.”

Rubio also did not rule out taking a pragmatic approach to Tehran, telling NBC News that “if the Iranian regime says tomorrow, ‘We’re going to stop trying to be a regional power, we’re going to stop nuclear weapons,’ we’re going to stop sponsoring terrorism, we’re going to stop trying to kill you – that is what we’re going to do with Donald Trump — we’re going to stop all that stuff,’ theoretically, Yeah, sure, you could do that.”

However, he added that such a scenario is “impossible because it is the regime’s mission and goal.” Iran has denied US accusations that Tehran was involved in a plot to assassinate Trump.

It is widely agreed that the incoming Trump administration will be more hostile to providing more military aid to Ukraine, significantly curbing its ability to continue fighting Russia. It is also seen as a possibility that the administration of the Republic will push Kyiv into peace talks with Russia which will be forced to concede occupied land to its neighbor as part of the peace deal.

Rubio insisted that he was “not on Russia’s side” but he told NBC News in late September that “unfortunately the reality is that the way the war in Ukraine is going to end is with a negotiated settlement.”

“I hope that when that time comes, there will be more influence on the Ukrainian side than on the Russian side. That’s really the goal here, in my mind. And I think that (former President) Donald Trump is trying to say,” Rubio said.

The senator was initially a vocal supporter of Ukraine, but his support, and that of other Republicans, has waned as funding bills have mounted after 32 months of war, and as domestic issues remain unresolved.

Rubio was among a small group of hard-line Republicans who voted in April against a $95 billion aid package to help Ukraine, Taiwan and Israel, saying he opposed the bill because the U.S. was not doing enough to address its own domestic challenges, such as border security and immigration. .