Senator Marco Rubio will host a summit on July 15 in Washington with representatives from over 60 countries to discuss countering a resurgence in political violence. The event follows President Donald Trump's counterterrorism strategy.
The summit signals a renewed focus by the U.S. government on combating political violence globally, aligning with the Trump administration's counterterrorism strategy and addressing perceived inadequacies in current approaches.
Senator Marco Rubio is set to host a summit on July 15 in Washington aimed at discussing ways to counter a resurgence in political violence. The event, officially termed a "ministerial on resurgence of political terrorism," will convene representatives from more than 60 countries across the Western Hemisphere, Europe, and Asia.
The summit is framed as a follow-up to President Donald Trump's counterterrorism strategy, signed in May, which targets "violent, secular political groups whose ideology is anti-American, radically transgender or anarchist, such as Antifa." A State Department official emphasized that the global threat of political violence has been inadequately addressed historically and that current counterterrorism approaches require an update to protect U.S. national security interests.
The official outlined that U.S. efforts focus on activities meeting the definition of terrorism, including assassinations, kidnapping, violent threats to government and infrastructure, and attacks on military personnel. The initiative also comes in the wake of the September assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, which prompted White House aides to call for coordinated action against unnamed left-wing groups accused of promoting violence. The White House has also stated its strategy will address right-wing groups that foment violence.