Munich Security Conference 2026: Reflection of the US-Led Imperialist System in Steep Decline that Threatens Only War
Source: http://www.rcpbml.org.uk/wwie-26/ww26-05/ww26-05-02.htm
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:12
Munich Security Conference 2026: Reflection of the US-Led Imperialist System in
Steep Decline that Threatens Only War
Volume 56 Number 5, February 21,
2026
ARCHIVE
HOME
JBCENTRE
SUBSCRIBE
Munich Security
Conference 2026
Reflection of the US-Led Imperialist System in Steep Decline
that Threatens Only War
The 62nd Munich Security Conference (MSC) that took place from February 13
to 15, 2026, produced no communiqué or statement, yet once again was
revealed as the reflection of the deepening crisis of the US-led imperialist
system in steep decline that threatens only war. The organisers themselves
could not conceal this reality. Their flagship publication, the Munich Security
Report 2026, was ironically revealing, titled -
Under Destruction
[1].
It highlighted that "[t]he world has entered a period of wrecking-ball
politics. Sweeping destruction - rather than careful reforms and policy
corrections - is the order of the day" and that "the US-led post-1945
international order is now under destruction". Yet, there was no drawing
of the obvious conclusions about the reality that neither their claims to
previous "careful reforms and policy corrections", nor now their
"wrecking-ball politics" have brought about security and peace to
Europe and the world in the "US-led post-1945 order". In fact, the
very opposite.
Britain, Germany, France and the EU leaders have continued to embrace the US
"wrecking-ball politics" themselves amidst the wreckage of their own
decline. Thus at the conference, in the name of the security of Europe these
old powers, now calling themselves the "coalition of the willing",
pledged to escalate their proxy war in Ukraine against Russia. They gave their
support to the US in its war threats to Iran, Venezuela, Cuba and the DPRK and
continued support for Israel in its war crimes in Gaza and the West Bank.
German Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz was the first to address the
conference on February 13 [2]. He received much exaggerated praise in the press
for adding his own pessimistic twist to the "under destruction"
theme. He said: "This conference has a sombre title:
Under
Destruction
. This title appears to suggest that the international order,
which was based on rights and rules, is in the process of being destroyed. - I
fear we must put this even more bluntly: this order, as imperfect as it was
even at the best of times, no longer exists." However, the hypocrisy of
this "rules-based international order" which had led to NATO's move
eastwards to threaten Russia in Ukraine and on all sides was ignored as he
blamed Russia as a justification for Europe to now become militaristic. He saw
a fierce Germany in the lead announcing measures to restore Germany's military
industry and forces. As many people have commented this is an approach that has
not worked so well before for Germany!
In this way Merz warned Europe to prepare for "a decade of danger"
and demanded higher defence spending, faster rearmament, and "unwavering
support for Ukraine". However, Merz, like Starmer and Macron, embodies a
vision for Europe that wants to act like a great power but cannot escape its
dependence on the United States and in this way Merz's bravado barely concealed
Germany's strategic paralysis alongside Britain and France. His call, like
Starmer regarding Britain, for a more assertive Germany rang hollow - an echo
of a past that cannot be revived.
French President Emmanuel Macron also addressed the Conference on February
13 [3] casting himself as Europe's visionary-in-chief making a call for Europe
to assert itself as a sovereign geopolitical power. He said that "a
stronger Europe will be a better friend for its allies, especially for the
United States". He repeated his call for "European strategic
autonomy", insisting that Europe must not be "vassals" of any
great power, while simultaneously urging deeper alignment with NATO and
continued escalation of NATO's proxy war in Ukraine. The contradiction was as
glaring as with Starmer and Merz. Macron wants Europe to stand on its own feet,
but only so long as it marches in step with Washington. The performance of
Macron, alongside Merz and Starmer, in Munich captured the essence of the EU's
crisis - a leadership class that talks of independence while remaining
structurally dependent, that speaks of peace while fuelling war, and that
cannot decide whether it fears American decline more than it fears a world no
longer organised around "Western" dominance.
Speaking on February 14, Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered what was
hailed by the organisers as a "landmark address" [4]. This was
interesting because clearly the US was seen as the architect of the
"wrecking-ball politics" spoken about in the conference. But this was
an attempt by Rubio to paper over the ongoing and increasing contradictions and
tensions between the US under President Donald Trump and the old European
powers at the head of NATO. It was a chilling call by Rubio for Europe to
re-embrace its colonial legacy and Eurocentric values. He hailed
"thousands of years of Western civilisation". He declared that the US
"may be in the Western Hemisphere, but we will always be a child of
Europe", jointly insulting the people of the Americas and Europe. This
became even more ironic with the words of Rubio railing against the "a
pursuit of a world without borders, we opened our doors to an unprecedented
wave of mass migration that threatens the cohesion of our societies, the
continuity of our culture, and the future of our people".
Rubio then claimed that the US was for peace and security, saying that it
was not the UN but "American leadership that freed captives from
barbarians and brought about a fragile truce" for Israel. In other words,
condemning the Palestinians for resisting, and justifying Israeli ongoing
genocidal crimes. He tried to justify the criminal bombing of Iran, lying that
it was to "constrain the nuclear program of radical Shia clerics in
Tehran. That required 14 bombs dropped with precision from American B-2
bombers." He also tried to justify the US act of state terrorism against
Venezuela and its people and the kidnapping of the President of the Bolivian
Republic of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores abusing
the President of Venezuela as a "narcoterrorist dictator in
Venezuela". On Ukraine, not only did the US alongside Britain and the EU
provoke and support the Ukraine war with Russia in 2022, but Rubio tried to say
that this is a war that the US claims to be negotiating an end, whilst in
reality increasing the oil sanctions on Russia and that "American weaponry
is being sold for the Ukrainian war effort".
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer also spoke at the conference on
February 14 [5]. Reeling from the political crisis at home, Starmer was
determined to show that Britain remains a loyal foot soldier of US strategy and
that it follows the US "wrecking-ball" wherever it goes, even though
more and more countries at the conference in Europe were reluctant to follow.
Starmer said that the "US remains an indispensable power" and that
"we recognise that things are changing. The US National Security Strategy
spells out that Europe must take primary responsibility for its own
defence," declaring "that is the new law". In other words, he
attempted to align Britain even more tightly with Washington. He dismissed the
irony of Brexit by attempting to present Britain as the leader in Europe,
trying to align Europe with Britain, when he said that "as Europe, we must
stand on our own two feet and that means being bold". On this Starmer
said: "We must build our hard power, because that is the currency of the
age. We must be able to deter aggression. And yes, if necessary, we must be
ready to fight." In other words, Starmer offered no political vision
beyond Britain's own "wrecking-ball politics" to ensure there is no
peace between Ukraine and Russia. So, no peace in Europe and doubling down on
militarisation and arming the "coalition of the willing" for its
ongoing proxy war in Ukraine against Russia whether the war continues, or
whether there is a peace agreement.
According to reports, the US threat to re-attack Iran was not discussed
openly in the main forums and Iranian officials are barred from attending the
conference. However, Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi criticised the
Munich Security Conference and said that the annual security gathering had
"turned into the 'Munich Circus'" when it comes to Iran, blaming the
European Union and Germany and accusing European powers of losing influence in
negotiations over Tehran's nuclear programme. He added that "our friends
in the region are far more effective and helpful than an empty-handed and
peripheral E3" and claimed that Germany "is leading the way in wholly
surrendering its regional policy to Israel". However, it was reported on
the sidelines of the conference, Reza Pahlavi - the son of Iran's former
monarch - said that US military intervention could help accelerate political
change inside Iran and claimed Washington should avoid prolonged negotiations
with Tehran over a nuclear deal. Indeed, his remarks even on the sidelines of
the conference highlighted the circus that the MSC has become and the false
claims that it represents an event for security and not war for the people of
Europe and the world.
However, there was some sense of accounting at the MSC when justice was
reflected, not from Europe but from the East in the keynote speech by China's
foreign minister Wang Yi [6] in a Conversation with China. He rightly said
among other important points: "There needs to be greater democracy in
international relations, global affairs should be discussed by all and the
future of the world should be decided by all."
For many years we have seen that the MSC's description of itself is no
longer true. Set up in 1963 in the Cold War period it aimed to by-pass the
United Nations as the international security body. The MSC claimed to be the
"world's leading forum for debating international security policy".
However, the MSC is more and more becoming incapable to come to any decisions.
Instead it has become a rally for the warmongers and not even a forum. Russia
Today (RT) reported that the MSC "resembled a rally of a self-styled
'coalition of the willing' for war. That, unfortunately, is consistent with
Germany's long tradition of failing to draw the right lessons from history.
Western European leaders spoke almost exclusively about rearmament and the
creation of an independent military capability aimed, openly or implicitly, at
confrontation with Russia. The tone was unmistakable: preparation for war, not
peace. At the same time, participants repeated the familiar mantra that 'more
must be done' to ensure Ukraine's victory. The contradiction went largely
unnoticed. What emerged instead was a disturbing impression that Western
Europe's war party has overwhelmed everything else, including common sense and
the instinct for self-preservation." [7]
Conclusion
No path to peace was discussed at the MSC. No political settlement was
considered to resolve the issues with the Russian Federation that the leaders
of Britain and the EU blamed. Only more weapons, more destruction, more denial
of peace and no real security for the peoples of Europe and the world. The
contradiction was glaring: A conference supposedly devoted to
"security" endorsing policies of warring factions that make the world
profoundly insecure. The MSC was revealed as the reflection of the deepening
crisis of the US-led imperialist system in steep decline that threatens only
war.
Fight For the Alternative
Security is defined by defending the well-being of the people and the rights
of all. The peoples have the right to live in a peaceful world, where conflicts
are resolved through international co-operation and negotiation among peoples
and countries. Security does not lie with these warmongers and their war
preparations. Nor does it lie with the prerogatives of the rich, their arms
manufactures and their spheres of contention that fuel division and wars among
countries, nationalities and peoples. For the working class and people, the
emphasis must be that it is they that have to work to consolidate themselves as
the power to combat this warmongering, violence, dictate and militarism. This
with their sights set on constituting themselves as an Anti-War Government, and
all that entails about authority and power resting with the people who desire
peace. The initiative lies with the people and their anti-war movement in
Britain and throughout the world.
Notes
1.
Under Destruction
- Munich Security Report 2026
https://securityconference.org/en/publications/munich-security-report/2026/
2. Speech by the Federal Chancellor at the Munich Security Conference on 13.
February 2026 in Munich
https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-en/federal-government/speech-munich-security-conference-2407298
3. Emmanuel Macron Remarks @ MSC 2026 (Transcript)
https://singjupost.com/emmanuel-macron-remarks-msc-2026-transcript/
4. Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Munich Security Conference
https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesperson/2026/02/secretary-of-state-marco-rubio-at-the-munich-security-conference
5. Speech - PM speech during the Munich Security Conference: 14 February
https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/pm-speech-during-the-munich-security-conference-14-february
6. Keynote Speech by H.E. Wang Yi at the 62nd Munich Security Conference
Conversation with China
https://www.mfa.gov.cn/eng/wjbzhd/202602/t20260215_11860435.html
7. The war party takes Munich - The Munich Security Conference again became a
rally, not a forum
https://www.facebook.com/fforbiddennews/posts/the-war-party-takes-munichthe-munich-security-conference-again-became-a-rally-no/916361661320058/
Link to Full Issue of Workers'
Weekly
RCPB(ML) Home Page
Workers' Weekly Online
Archive
Steep Decline that Threatens Only War
Volume 56 Number 5, February 21,
2026
ARCHIVE
HOME
JBCENTRE
SUBSCRIBE
Munich Security
Conference 2026
Reflection of the US-Led Imperialist System in Steep Decline
that Threatens Only War
The 62nd Munich Security Conference (MSC) that took place from February 13
to 15, 2026, produced no communiqué or statement, yet once again was
revealed as the reflection of the deepening crisis of the US-led imperialist
system in steep decline that threatens only war. The organisers themselves
could not conceal this reality. Their flagship publication, the Munich Security
Report 2026, was ironically revealing, titled -
Under Destruction
[1].
It highlighted that "[t]he world has entered a period of wrecking-ball
politics. Sweeping destruction - rather than careful reforms and policy
corrections - is the order of the day" and that "the US-led post-1945
international order is now under destruction". Yet, there was no drawing
of the obvious conclusions about the reality that neither their claims to
previous "careful reforms and policy corrections", nor now their
"wrecking-ball politics" have brought about security and peace to
Europe and the world in the "US-led post-1945 order". In fact, the
very opposite.
Britain, Germany, France and the EU leaders have continued to embrace the US
"wrecking-ball politics" themselves amidst the wreckage of their own
decline. Thus at the conference, in the name of the security of Europe these
old powers, now calling themselves the "coalition of the willing",
pledged to escalate their proxy war in Ukraine against Russia. They gave their
support to the US in its war threats to Iran, Venezuela, Cuba and the DPRK and
continued support for Israel in its war crimes in Gaza and the West Bank.
German Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz was the first to address the
conference on February 13 [2]. He received much exaggerated praise in the press
for adding his own pessimistic twist to the "under destruction"
theme. He said: "This conference has a sombre title:
Under
Destruction
. This title appears to suggest that the international order,
which was based on rights and rules, is in the process of being destroyed. - I
fear we must put this even more bluntly: this order, as imperfect as it was
even at the best of times, no longer exists." However, the hypocrisy of
this "rules-based international order" which had led to NATO's move
eastwards to threaten Russia in Ukraine and on all sides was ignored as he
blamed Russia as a justification for Europe to now become militaristic. He saw
a fierce Germany in the lead announcing measures to restore Germany's military
industry and forces. As many people have commented this is an approach that has
not worked so well before for Germany!
In this way Merz warned Europe to prepare for "a decade of danger"
and demanded higher defence spending, faster rearmament, and "unwavering
support for Ukraine". However, Merz, like Starmer and Macron, embodies a
vision for Europe that wants to act like a great power but cannot escape its
dependence on the United States and in this way Merz's bravado barely concealed
Germany's strategic paralysis alongside Britain and France. His call, like
Starmer regarding Britain, for a more assertive Germany rang hollow - an echo
of a past that cannot be revived.
French President Emmanuel Macron also addressed the Conference on February
13 [3] casting himself as Europe's visionary-in-chief making a call for Europe
to assert itself as a sovereign geopolitical power. He said that "a
stronger Europe will be a better friend for its allies, especially for the
United States". He repeated his call for "European strategic
autonomy", insisting that Europe must not be "vassals" of any
great power, while simultaneously urging deeper alignment with NATO and
continued escalation of NATO's proxy war in Ukraine. The contradiction was as
glaring as with Starmer and Merz. Macron wants Europe to stand on its own feet,
but only so long as it marches in step with Washington. The performance of
Macron, alongside Merz and Starmer, in Munich captured the essence of the EU's
crisis - a leadership class that talks of independence while remaining
structurally dependent, that speaks of peace while fuelling war, and that
cannot decide whether it fears American decline more than it fears a world no
longer organised around "Western" dominance.
Speaking on February 14, Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered what was
hailed by the organisers as a "landmark address" [4]. This was
interesting because clearly the US was seen as the architect of the
"wrecking-ball politics" spoken about in the conference. But this was
an attempt by Rubio to paper over the ongoing and increasing contradictions and
tensions between the US under President Donald Trump and the old European
powers at the head of NATO. It was a chilling call by Rubio for Europe to
re-embrace its colonial legacy and Eurocentric values. He hailed
"thousands of years of Western civilisation". He declared that the US
"may be in the Western Hemisphere, but we will always be a child of
Europe", jointly insulting the people of the Americas and Europe. This
became even more ironic with the words of Rubio railing against the "a
pursuit of a world without borders, we opened our doors to an unprecedented
wave of mass migration that threatens the cohesion of our societies, the
continuity of our culture, and the future of our people".
Rubio then claimed that the US was for peace and security, saying that it
was not the UN but "American leadership that freed captives from
barbarians and brought about a fragile truce" for Israel. In other words,
condemning the Palestinians for resisting, and justifying Israeli ongoing
genocidal crimes. He tried to justify the criminal bombing of Iran, lying that
it was to "constrain the nuclear program of radical Shia clerics in
Tehran. That required 14 bombs dropped with precision from American B-2
bombers." He also tried to justify the US act of state terrorism against
Venezuela and its people and the kidnapping of the President of the Bolivian
Republic of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores abusing
the President of Venezuela as a "narcoterrorist dictator in
Venezuela". On Ukraine, not only did the US alongside Britain and the EU
provoke and support the Ukraine war with Russia in 2022, but Rubio tried to say
that this is a war that the US claims to be negotiating an end, whilst in
reality increasing the oil sanctions on Russia and that "American weaponry
is being sold for the Ukrainian war effort".
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer also spoke at the conference on
February 14 [5]. Reeling from the political crisis at home, Starmer was
determined to show that Britain remains a loyal foot soldier of US strategy and
that it follows the US "wrecking-ball" wherever it goes, even though
more and more countries at the conference in Europe were reluctant to follow.
Starmer said that the "US remains an indispensable power" and that
"we recognise that things are changing. The US National Security Strategy
spells out that Europe must take primary responsibility for its own
defence," declaring "that is the new law". In other words, he
attempted to align Britain even more tightly with Washington. He dismissed the
irony of Brexit by attempting to present Britain as the leader in Europe,
trying to align Europe with Britain, when he said that "as Europe, we must
stand on our own two feet and that means being bold". On this Starmer
said: "We must build our hard power, because that is the currency of the
age. We must be able to deter aggression. And yes, if necessary, we must be
ready to fight." In other words, Starmer offered no political vision
beyond Britain's own "wrecking-ball politics" to ensure there is no
peace between Ukraine and Russia. So, no peace in Europe and doubling down on
militarisation and arming the "coalition of the willing" for its
ongoing proxy war in Ukraine against Russia whether the war continues, or
whether there is a peace agreement.
According to reports, the US threat to re-attack Iran was not discussed
openly in the main forums and Iranian officials are barred from attending the
conference. However, Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi criticised the
Munich Security Conference and said that the annual security gathering had
"turned into the 'Munich Circus'" when it comes to Iran, blaming the
European Union and Germany and accusing European powers of losing influence in
negotiations over Tehran's nuclear programme. He added that "our friends
in the region are far more effective and helpful than an empty-handed and
peripheral E3" and claimed that Germany "is leading the way in wholly
surrendering its regional policy to Israel". However, it was reported on
the sidelines of the conference, Reza Pahlavi - the son of Iran's former
monarch - said that US military intervention could help accelerate political
change inside Iran and claimed Washington should avoid prolonged negotiations
with Tehran over a nuclear deal. Indeed, his remarks even on the sidelines of
the conference highlighted the circus that the MSC has become and the false
claims that it represents an event for security and not war for the people of
Europe and the world.
However, there was some sense of accounting at the MSC when justice was
reflected, not from Europe but from the East in the keynote speech by China's
foreign minister Wang Yi [6] in a Conversation with China. He rightly said
among other important points: "There needs to be greater democracy in
international relations, global affairs should be discussed by all and the
future of the world should be decided by all."
For many years we have seen that the MSC's description of itself is no
longer true. Set up in 1963 in the Cold War period it aimed to by-pass the
United Nations as the international security body. The MSC claimed to be the
"world's leading forum for debating international security policy".
However, the MSC is more and more becoming incapable to come to any decisions.
Instead it has become a rally for the warmongers and not even a forum. Russia
Today (RT) reported that the MSC "resembled a rally of a self-styled
'coalition of the willing' for war. That, unfortunately, is consistent with
Germany's long tradition of failing to draw the right lessons from history.
Western European leaders spoke almost exclusively about rearmament and the
creation of an independent military capability aimed, openly or implicitly, at
confrontation with Russia. The tone was unmistakable: preparation for war, not
peace. At the same time, participants repeated the familiar mantra that 'more
must be done' to ensure Ukraine's victory. The contradiction went largely
unnoticed. What emerged instead was a disturbing impression that Western
Europe's war party has overwhelmed everything else, including common sense and
the instinct for self-preservation." [7]
Conclusion
No path to peace was discussed at the MSC. No political settlement was
considered to resolve the issues with the Russian Federation that the leaders
of Britain and the EU blamed. Only more weapons, more destruction, more denial
of peace and no real security for the peoples of Europe and the world. The
contradiction was glaring: A conference supposedly devoted to
"security" endorsing policies of warring factions that make the world
profoundly insecure. The MSC was revealed as the reflection of the deepening
crisis of the US-led imperialist system in steep decline that threatens only
war.
Fight For the Alternative
Security is defined by defending the well-being of the people and the rights
of all. The peoples have the right to live in a peaceful world, where conflicts
are resolved through international co-operation and negotiation among peoples
and countries. Security does not lie with these warmongers and their war
preparations. Nor does it lie with the prerogatives of the rich, their arms
manufactures and their spheres of contention that fuel division and wars among
countries, nationalities and peoples. For the working class and people, the
emphasis must be that it is they that have to work to consolidate themselves as
the power to combat this warmongering, violence, dictate and militarism. This
with their sights set on constituting themselves as an Anti-War Government, and
all that entails about authority and power resting with the people who desire
peace. The initiative lies with the people and their anti-war movement in
Britain and throughout the world.
Notes
1.
Under Destruction
- Munich Security Report 2026
https://securityconference.org/en/publications/munich-security-report/2026/
2. Speech by the Federal Chancellor at the Munich Security Conference on 13.
February 2026 in Munich
https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-en/federal-government/speech-munich-security-conference-2407298
3. Emmanuel Macron Remarks @ MSC 2026 (Transcript)
https://singjupost.com/emmanuel-macron-remarks-msc-2026-transcript/
4. Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Munich Security Conference
https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesperson/2026/02/secretary-of-state-marco-rubio-at-the-munich-security-conference
5. Speech - PM speech during the Munich Security Conference: 14 February
https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/pm-speech-during-the-munich-security-conference-14-february
6. Keynote Speech by H.E. Wang Yi at the 62nd Munich Security Conference
Conversation with China
https://www.mfa.gov.cn/eng/wjbzhd/202602/t20260215_11860435.html
7. The war party takes Munich - The Munich Security Conference again became a
rally, not a forum
https://www.facebook.com/fforbiddennews/posts/the-war-party-takes-munichthe-munich-security-conference-again-became-a-rally-no/916361661320058/
Link to Full Issue of Workers'
Weekly
RCPB(ML) Home Page
Workers' Weekly Online
Archive