Political speech, timestamped and in context

Marco Rubio: “I'm visiting here today because this place matters, both economically, but also from a defense standpoint.”

Featuring: Marco Rubio, Republican | Secretary of State, United States | National

Rubio, Next To Icelandic Official, Asked About Trump Posting Map Of Iceland Covered By American Flag

Published October 6, 2026

So. But I don't think that's enduring. Our. We still have people present. We're still committed to it. And as I said, I'm visiting here today because this place matters, both economically, but also from a defense standpoint. Yeah, actually, I have nothing to add to this. You know, he explained. Marco explained it very eloquently during our meeting. Why, you know, they needed the forces elsewhere. (02:44–02:49)

STATEMENT

Asserts the importance of Iceland for economic and defense reasons.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

See the main statements from Marco Rubio in this video

“We do a lot of things together, and everything's very positive in our relationship [with Iceland].”
Asserts a positive relationship between the U.S. and Iceland.01:52-01:57
“It requires us to allocate resources. And sometimes when you are involved, whether it's in protecting shipping lanes, like we've had to do because of this terrorist regime in Iran, targeting commercial shipping lanes or the defensive airspace, or the need to backfill what's happening in the Indo Pacific as a result of this shift of forces, anytime you have activities going on in the world, you have to move your assets to that, and sometimes they're not available for exercises.”
Asserts that U.S. military resources are allocated to protect shipping lanes from Iran and to address Indo-Pacific needs.02:02-02:30
“I don't think that's an enduring decision. I think just one, that from the timing standpoint, of when it happened and it overlaid with existing operations around the world.”
Asserts that the absence of U.S. forces in exercises is not a permanent decision.02:30-02:39
“We still have people present. We're still committed to it.”
Asserts continued U.S. military presence and commitment in the region.02:40-02:44