Rubio highlights investment opportunities during Iceland visit

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he would point American companies to investment opportunities in Iceland, including in geothermal energy and marine science, during his official visit, mbl.is reported.

Rubio and Icelandic Foreign Minister Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir held a news conference at Safnahúsið after meeting at Höfði earlier on Tuesday. Rubio also met Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir at Safnahúsið.

Asked about a social media post by US President Donald Trump last month that depicted Iceland, Greenland, Canada and other countries as part of US territory, Rubio said he was not in Iceland to discuss social media posts and that relations between Iceland and the United States were positive.

Gunnarsdóttir agreed, saying the matter had already been handled constructively. She said Iceland was open about its position and that the two countries had a good relationship.

Rubio said closer business ties were important and noted that NASA astronauts had trained in Iceland for moon missions in the past. He also said the two countries would continue to defend Iceland.

Police maintained a heavy security presence during the visit, with at least 10 armed officers outside Höfði. Hverfisgata was closed to traffic during the meeting. Rubio was due to make a brief stop at the US embassy before leaving Iceland.