U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Munich, Germany, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.
| Photo Credit: AP
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held talks with Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Friday (February 13, 2026) on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference at a time of heightened Washington-Beijing tensions.
The talks, which lasted an hour according to Rubio’s team, came just days after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would host Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House toward the end of the year, notably to discuss trade issues.
Mr. Rubio and Mr. Wang met at a major hotel in the Bavarian capital, shaking hands but not speaking to reporters. Washington and Beijing have been locked in a standoff over tariffs since Mr. Trump returned to power last year.
Mr. Rubio and Mr. Wang held a one-on-one meeting in Malaysia in July and have spoken several times by phone.
Mr. Rubio is set to hold a series of meetings, including Friday (February 13, 2026), with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, before delivering a much-anticipated speech on Saturday.
The meeting comes as the CIA expanded a push to recruit spies with a new Chinese-language video released Thursday (February 12) that seeks to target disaffected military officers.
Beijing said Friday (February 13) it would take “all necessary measures” against foreign espionage attempts.
Published – February 13, 2026 07:18 pm IST
