Secretary of State Marco Rubio's flight to Munich forced to turn around after crack discovered in plane's windshield
By STEPHEN M. LEPORE FOR DAILYMAIL.COM02:24 14 Feb 2025, updated 02:39 14 Feb 2025
Marco Rubio's plane had to turn back on its way to Munich after a windshield was cracked.
The Secretary of State was traveling to Germany to participate in the Munich Security Conference.
Social media took note of an odd route that the craft was taking that seemed to be going back in the direction from whence it came.
A federal official said that the problem was a windshield crack, that it was not a safety issue and Rubio will switch planes as soon as possible, according to Axios.
DailyMail.com has reached out to the State Department for comment.
After visiting Germany, Rubio will then travel to Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
The former Florida Senator was unanimously confirmed by the Senate to become secretary of state.
His nomination to head the State Departmentmoved through the Senate earlier in the evening among a rash of other Trump Cabinet picks who also advanced key hurdles.
Social media took note of an odd route that the craft was taking that seemed to be going back in the direction from whence it came
The Senate then moved to immediately consider Rubio's confirmation before the 100 members, even the Florida Republican himself got to vote on his own fate.
Rubio's confirmation keeps in line with a tradition among the Senate to confirm at least one presidential Cabinet member on Inauguration Day dating back to Bill Clinton's first day on the job.
Usually the nominees have importance to national security, and as incoming head of the State Department, Rubio will have a lot to handle in that vein.
Trump wants to take back the Panama Canal, rename the Gulf of Mexico, end the Russia-Ukraine war, and address the Middle East, which he mentioned Monday.
'I want to be a peacemaker and a unifier,' Trump said minutes after being inaugurated. 'I'm pleased to say that as of yesterday, one day before I assumed office, the hostages in the Middle East are coming back home to their families.'
'America will reclaim its rightful place as the greatest, most powerful, most respected nation on earth, inspiring the awe and admiration of the entire world,' he added, previewing his ambitions of the U.S. on the world's stage.
Rubio is now tasked as the top diplomat of the U.S. to negotiate the complicated global affairs landscape on the president's behalf and achieve the lofty goals he has set forth.
Speaking with Canadian counterparts about the America's northern neighbor joining the U.S. and negotiating with Denmark's officials to acquire Greenland are serious potential tasks Rubio might be handed.
Marco Rubio at his Senate Nomination Hearing
Rubio even recently led credence to the claims that the Panama Canal is being influenced by China, a main point Trump has made for its reacquisition.
During his confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee earlier this month Rubio said the canal must be reevaluated.
He also suggested the agreement under which the U.S. turned it over to Panama may have been violated.
‘I’m compelled to suspect that an argument could be made that the terms under which that canal were turned over have been violated,' Rubio said in response to a question by Utah Senator John Curtis.
Rubio said Panama has not turned over sovereignty of the canal, but he raised concerns over the Chinese ports operating on either side of it.
'In reality, a foreign power today possesses through their companies, which we know are not independent, the ability to turn the canal into a choke point in a moment of conflict,’ Rubio said.
Rubio warned it is a ‘direct threat to the national interest and security’ of the U.S.
