Secretary Rubio Convenes 60-Nation Coalition to Counter a Resurgence of Political Terrorism

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio opened an international counterterrorism conference this week with remarks calling on allied governments to build a new, coordinated response to what he described as a resurgence of politically motivated terrorism. The gathering, published July 16, 2026 on the State Department’s Substack under the title “Countering the Resurgence of Political Terrorism,” drew political leaders, security officials, and law enforcement representatives from more than 60 countries.

Rubio framed the conference as a turning point in Western counterterrorism strategy, which he said has spent the past quarter-century organized almost entirely around the threat of Islamist extremism following the September 11, 2001 attacks and subsequent bombings in Madrid and London. He credited that campaign — including the defeat of the ISIS caliphate and the deaths of Osama bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi — with sharply reducing jihadist attacks in the United States and Europe over the past decade.

A Call to Confront Far-Left Violence

The bulk of Rubio’s address argued that Western institutions have systematically underestimated politically motivated violence originating from the far left, saying such acts have too often been minimized or excused in public discourse compared to other forms of extremism. He pointed to historical episodes of left-wing political violence in Latin America, Europe, and the United States — including groups such as Peru’s Shining Path, Italy’s Red Brigades, Germany’s Red Army Faction, and the Weather Underground in the U.S. — as evidence that such violence has deep and, in his telling, underacknowledged roots.

It is time for the peoples of the civilized world to defend ourselves. Marco Rubio · U.S. Secretary of State

Citing recent incidents in Greece, Germany, and France, Rubio argued that far-left and anarchist violence is rising sharply across parts of Europe and the United States, and said the administration has moved to treat the threat with the same institutional seriousness historically applied to jihadist terrorism. He described the violence as transnational in character, alleging coordination across borders and, in some cases, links to hostile foreign states.

Policy Steps Announced

Rubio outlined a series of measures the administration has taken under President Trump, framing them as the foundation of a broader coalition effort:

He closed by calling for expanded intelligence sharing, coordinated law enforcement strategy, and financial targeting of the networks he described, describing the conference as the start of a sustained international effort rather than a single response to any one incident.

Rooted in Unity Staff

Editorial Team

Rooted in Unity is a Houston, Texas-based interfaith and civic advocacy organization dedicated to dialogue and Abrahamic unity among Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. This report summarizes remarks published by the U.S. Department of State.