Unlike Vance, he did not laud rightwing European populist parties, but he nonetheless wrapped himself in their ideology. His next stop after Munich was Budapest, where Viktor Orbán faces a battle in April to remain in power. One reference by the US secretary of state to his country being “a child of Europe” and the older romantics of transatlanticism melted. At one level, the US and Europe vehemently agree that Europe should take greater responsibility for its own conventional defence. European defence firms should not be browbeaten into buying US military hardware.

Source: The Guardian February 15, 2026 17:34 UTC