Washington is unlikely to try to make European nations pay for recent US strikes against the Houthi rebels in Yemen, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday.
His comments come after Vice President JD Vance, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth complained about the US having to foot the bill for anti-Houthi operations and suggested Europe should be made to pay in some capacity.
“The United States is doing a great favour to the world, going after these guys,” Mr Rubio said in response to a question from The National during a visit to Jamaica. “The point I would make is not that we're going to make anybody pay, it's that everybody should recognise we are doing the world a great favour.”
This month, the US launched a series of military strikes against the Houthis, killing several high-ranking figures, with the goal of restoring freedom of navigation in the Red Sea. The campaign has continued over the past several days, with strikes reported in Sanaa on Wednesday.
Mr Rubio said the actions of the Houthis were “unsustainable” and referred to the group as a “religious, fanatic gang”.
He was speaking to journalists in Kingston during a two-day trip to the Caribbean, but while many questions were focused on US relations with the region, he could not outrun the biggest scandal to hit President Donald Trump's administration so far.
This week, Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, said he was inadvertently added to a group on the messaging app Signal, where high-level US officials including Mr Rubio discussed the first wave of strikes on Yemen, including the times and weapons to be used, hours before the attacks were launched.
Mr Rubio defended the administration, saying there was no classified information involved. “The Pentagon says it was not [classified],” he said. “And not only did it say it was not, they made it very clear that it didn't put in danger anyone's life.”
Among the revelations that have come from the group chat are the extent of the administration's frustration with European allies. Mr Vance expressed concern over the strikes, fearing the US would be doing Europe’s bidding.
Signal chat leaks: Messages appear to show Hegseth reveal Houthi plans
“Three per cent of US trade runs through the Suez [Canal]. Forty per cent of European trade does. There is a real risk that the public doesn’t understand this or why it’s necessary. The strongest reason to do this is, as Potus [Mr Trump] said, to send a message,” Mr Vance wrote in the message thread, excerpts of which were published by The Atlantic.
“I am not sure the President is aware how inconsistent this is with his message on Europe right now. There’s a further risk that we see a moderate to severe spike in oil prices.”
Mr Vance went on to say that he hated “bailing Europe out again”.
Mr Hegseth said he shared the Vice President's frustrations. “I fully share your loathing of European free-loading. It’s pathetic.”
Mr Waltz, who was also in the chat, said he was looking into ways that would mean Europe could bear the cost of the strikes. “Per the President’s request, we are working with DoD [Department of Defence] and State [Department] to determine how to compile the cost associated and levy them on the Europeans,” he wrote.
The Trump administration has tried to play down the incident, with Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard calling it “a mistake” but adding that “there were no sources, methods, locations or war plans that were shared”. The White House and administration officials have made similar statements, with Mr Waltz saying the chat included “no war plans”.
The White House has instead gone on the attack against Goldberg, with Mr Trump calling him a “sleaze-bag”, Mr Waltz describing him as “scum” and press secretary Karoline Leavitt saying the journalist was “well-known for his sensationalist spin”.