AnewZ's Orkhan Amashov reports from Munich as the three-day Munich Security Conference kicked off on Friday (13 February), bringing together world leaders, diplomats, and policy makers to discuss pressing global security challenges.
“The rupture of the Transatlantic Alliance is facing one of its major crises in living memory,” said the president of the Munich Security Conference in his opening remarks, framing the event around this year’s conference report, Under Destruction, which examines the state of global affairs as a “wrecking ball” from multiple angles.
Amashov described the atmosphere as “electric,” noting that the conference, held at Munich’s Hotel Bayerischer Hof, is unusually condensed compared with gatherings such as Davos or the UN General Assembly, with leaders arriving for a flurry of meetings and panel sessions.
A key focus is the U.S. delegation, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whose speech, on Saturday, is expected to set the tone for U.S.-Europe relations amid heightened tensions over NATO cohesion and Arctic security. Discussions are also expected to address China’s potential role in limiting Russia’s actions in Ukraine, an issue European leaders are watching closely.
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev arrived in Munich on Friday, holding meetings with senior officials, including the head of the Kurdish Regional Government of Iraq.
President Aliyev is scheduled to participate in a panel discussion on Saturday.
Other historic moments in the conference’s 60-year history, such as Vladimir Putin’s 2007 speech, were cited as context for current debates, highlighting how strategic signalling from global powers continues to shape European security calculations.
The conference continues through Sunday, with a series of speeches, bilateral meetings, and panel discussions aimed at addressing what organisers describe as “unprecedented challenges” to the international order and alliance cohesion.
Senior Fellow Qinduo Zhu of the Pangoal Institution told AnewZ from Munich that European leaders are increasingly recognising the need to take responsibility for their own security.
“After 80 years of protection, Europe has grown up. They now understand they are on their own and must face this new reality,” Zhu said.
He added that while the shift in mindset is broadly accepted, European nations are still adjusting to the practical challenges of assuming greater responsibility for defence and NATO cohesion.
On the impact of the Ukraine war, Zhu highlighted that it has intensified debates over deterrence and the future structure of NATO.
“The U.S. is rebalancing the alliance, transforming NATO into a partnership-oriented framework that is very different from the unipolar period following the Soviet Union’s collapse,” he explained.
He noted that European states remain partners of the U.S., but the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and broader geopolitical pressures mean Europe must invest more in its security and economic resilience.
Zhu described the emerging narrative at the Munich Security Conference as one of urgency.
He reiterated that Europe must act independently, strengthen NATO, and confront the challenges of the new global order while balancing economic competition, transatlantic expectations and the complex dynamics of the Ukraine crisis.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he does not think he will need China's help to end the war with Iran as he le...
This is the third and final article in AnewZ’s series examining the fight for access to treatment for children with Duchenne muscular dystrop...
Russian forces have launched renewed attacks across Ukraine following the expiry of a short U.S.-mediated ceasefire, Ukrainian officials said, mark...
Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte has again been impeached by the country’s lower house, more than a...
Trade between the United Arab Emirates and Syria more than doubled in 2025, a UAE minister said on Tuesday duri...
Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte has again been impeached by the country’s lower house, more than a year after an earlier impeachment complaint against her was dismissed on constitutional grounds.
Trade between the United Arab Emirates and Syria more than doubled in 2025, a UAE minister said on Tuesday during an investment forum in Damascus that reflected rapidly improving ties between the two countries.
Start your day informed with the AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top stories for the 13th of May, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Former Georgia rugby captain Merab Sharikadze has been banned for 11 years after an anti-doping probe uncovered sample swapping in the national team. Several other players and the Georgian Rugby Union were also sanctioned
Kuwait arrested four members of an IRGC-linked group as they tried to enter the country by sea, the Gulf state's KUNA news agency reported on Tuesday. Meanwhile, a senior IRGC officer said Iran had expanded its definition of the Strait of Hormuz to include a far wider area.
Metropolitan Shio of Senaki and Chkhorotsku has been elected the 142nd head of the Georgian Orthodox Church at a meeting of clergy in Tbilisi following the death of longtime Patriarch Ilia II.
Biological samples from an Italian man were transferred to a specialist hospital for testing on Tuesday, after he was suspected of contracting hantavirus. Meanwhile, World Health Organization boss Tedros Ghebreyesus said there were “no sign” of a larger outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise.
Afghanistan has signed a five-year gold mining contract with Afghan and Azerbaijani companies in a deal worth more than $20m, the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum has said.
Exclusive flight-tracking material obtained by AnewZ has raised new questions about French military aircraft movements linked to President Emmanuel Macron’s recent diplomacy with Armenia and the wider scope of France’s defence cooperation with Yerevan.
Russian forces have launched renewed attacks across Ukraine following the expiry of a short U.S.-mediated ceasefire, Ukrainian officials said, marking a sharp escalation in hostilities after days of relative restraint.
Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte has again been impeached by the country’s lower house, more than a year after an earlier impeachment complaint against her was dismissed on constitutional grounds.
Trade between the United Arab Emirates and Syria more than doubled in 2025, a UAE minister said on Tuesday during an investment forum in Damascus that reflected rapidly improving ties between the two countries.
Start your day informed with the AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top stories for the 13th of May, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Senior officials from China and Uzbekistan met in Beijing this week for talks on trade, infrastructure and bilateral cooperation, underscoring a relationship that has continued to deepen steadily in recent years.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment