Rubio to discuss closer defense ties during Iceland visit

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Iceland on Monday evening and is due to meet Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir and Foreign Minister Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir on Tuesday, mbl.is reported.

Rubio and Frostadóttir are scheduled to meet at Höfði, a meeting venue. The National Commissioner of Police has imposed a drone-flying ban across a large area around the venue.

Rubio said the visit would focus on shared priorities: a secure Arctic, stronger trade and energy ties, and closer defense cooperation. Before travelling to Iceland, he described the country as “a good friend of the United States.”

Security was heightened in central Reykjavík on Monday evening as Rubio’s party arrived at its accommodation, with special police officers on duty.

After his meetings in Iceland, Rubio is due to travel to Athens for talks on regional and energy security, then make a brief stop in Lisbon. The last US secretary of state to visit Iceland was Antony Blinken, in 2021.