Key facts
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit Iceland, Greece, and Portugal from October 5-8.
- Rubio will discuss economic and security cooperation with Icelandic officials in Reykjavik.
- In Athens, Rubio will lead the US delegation for the sixth US-Greece Strategic Dialogue.
- The US-Greece Strategic Dialogue will focus on defense, energy, regional security, migration, internal security, and terrorism.
- Discussions in Athens will also include Middle East developments and Greek-Turkish relations.
- Rubio will meet with Portuguese officials in Lisbon to advance defense, economic, and technology cooperation.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to visit Iceland, Greece, and Portugal between October 5 and 8 to engage in discussions on economic and security cooperation. The trip was announced by the State Department on Thursday.
Rubio's itinerary begins in Reykjavik, where he will meet with Icelandic officials to discuss "economic and security collaboration." Following this, he will travel to Athens to lead the U.S. delegation for the sixth session of the US-Greece Strategic Dialogue. This high-level forum is designed to deepen cooperation across defense, energy, regional security, migration, internal security, and counter-terrorism efforts. Sources indicate that discussions in Athens will also encompass developments in the Middle East and the ongoing tensions in Greek-Turkish relations.
The final leg of Rubio's trip will be to Lisbon, where he will hold talks with Portuguese officials aimed at advancing defense, economic, and technology cooperation. This visit occurs amidst heightened rhetoric from Turkey regarding the demilitarization of Greek islands in the Aegean, a stance that Greece has consistently rejected as lacking legal basis.