US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke in Greece on October 7. He spoke with an epic backdrop of the Parthenon atop the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. In his speech he sought to channel the world of the ancient Greeks and contrast it with today. His message was clear: It was in Athens and the Greek City states that Western civilization has roots. We must look to those roots, the way the Romans once looked to their swords after the sack of Rome in 390BC, to renew and defend our way of life.
Rubio’s speech matters because it is emblematic of the American administration’s attempt to highlight the Trump doctrine. Rubio wanted to articulate the Trump administration’s underlying ideology and also give a resounding speech that will live into the future. This is a symbol of our time, like US President John Kennedy going to Berlin, or Adlai Stevenson speaking at the UN during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The way of life of the ancient Greeks may seem foreign to us, Rubio noted. This is because our way of life has become obsessed with safety, in contrast to their feats. We don’t know the shame of defeat or glory of victory. In this he was also channeling the words of Teddy Roosevely and the concept of the “man in the arena.”
America’s top diplomat talked about how the Western way of life has too often become about rewarding the average and mediocre. He contrasted this with the Parthenon in Athens. The Greek city states were filled with conflict and passion. They fought to distinguish themselves and they worked on art and philosophy.
The speech described the Greeks creating a great civilization. The ‘thumos’ is the Greek word for spiritedness. Rubio contrasted their sense of spirit with how people in the West now teach their children to be ashamed of their nationalism. The West has decayed. We have transferred our sovereignty in some cases. “As the West’s confidence faltered, its adversaries and rivals only became more assertive.” Today the West is at a crossroads. “The next decade and the decisions we make will write the story of the next century.” He asked whether the West will maintain its place at the head of the world, or decline and find itself in servitude.
Act now, Rubio urged. He said that under President Trump the US is working toward national power and to rebuild the defense industrial base. The US will rebuild the economy and master new technologies such as chips, cyber and drones. A new age of exploration in space is coming, he also said. This is the ultimate expression of the Trump doctrine.
Willingness to use military force
The American diplomat also discussed the willingness to use force. “The classical understanding of politics and statecraft that the Trump admin hopes to reclaim for our country and civilization.” He also said that he believes Europe can awaken from its slumber and rekindle its spirit. This means increasing defense spending and new manufacturing.
Rubio praised modern Greece. He said that Greece has been a model ally of the US. He said he hoped Europe would follow Greece’s example. This relates to Greek defense spending and also work on migration and other issues. It should be noted that Greece recently has become work on what it calls Achilles Shield, a major defense initiative. It signed a deal with Israel in late August to acquire air defense systems such as Spyder, David’s Sling and the Barak MX system.
The point that the US Secretary of State is making is also linked to American history. He describes the US growing across the continent. “Born in Athens, formed by Rome, baptized in Christendom, hardened in the furnace of medieval Europe, endowed with the English genius for liberty and then carried across the Atlantic to be reborn on the shores of a new world.” He speaks about an inflection point in our civilization. “The threats we face today are every bit as real as on the dramatic stage of antiquity.”
With the new competition between great powers and war, the US wants to rebuild institutions and alliances, Rubio says. This is where things stand today. Greece is one of the key American allies in the Eastern Mediterranean. Another is Israel. Turkey is also a NATO ally of the US. The Trump administration also has excellent relations with Saudi Arabia, Syria and many other countries.
Rubio’s speech helps show where the US administration’s path
The importance of Rubio’s speech is that it provides one more light on a dark road of the current global crisis. It helps point the way to where the US wants to go in the future. Rubio has tended to focus on certain parts of the Trump administration’s policies. For instance, he has focused less on the Iran conflict, and more on the doctrine in Latin America. He has focused less on Russia and more on other policies in Asia and Europe. Rubio is one of the most articulate of the Trump administration’s top officials, in terms of explaining the Trump doctrine and harnessing history to it.
What does the Athens speech tell us? In a world where the film Odyssey has been a resounding success, there is an appetite for learning about the ancient Greeks. The Greeks are also not lost on discussions in Israel. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has spoken about the country becoming a kind of “super Sparta.”
Israel channels many of the values that Rubio praised, such as being a nationalist country that defends its borders and has a strong defense industrial base. Israel as a country, of the Jewish people, also has connections to both Western civilization and older civilizations in the Middle East.
The speech in Athens was aimed mostly at a western European audience. The idea of Europe waking from its slumber is not new. Europe has slumbered before, for instance in the years after the Great War. Also in other centuries, such as the Dark Ages after Rome, or some of the years of the Medieval period. Each time Europe also recovered, just as Rome recovered after the sacking in 390 BC.
