News Feed

Plane malfunction forces State Secretary Rubio to return to Washington while en route to Munich Security Conference

1 min read
Plane malfunction forces State Secretary Rubio to return to Washington while en route to Munich Security Conference
U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing in Washington, DC, US, on Jan. 15, 2025. (Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

A U.S. Air Force plane carrying U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch was forced to return to Washington due to a technical malfunction, the Associated Press reported on Feb. 14.  

Rubio and Risch were en route to Germany for the Munich Security Conference. U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Rubio are scheduled to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Feb. 14.

The aircraft, a C-32 converted Boeing 757, experienced a problem with the cockpit windshield about 90 minutes after takeoff from Joint Base Andrews, prompting an emergency return to the base.  

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce confirmed the incident, saying Rubio "intends to continue his travel to Germany and the Middle East on a separate aircraft."  

Zelensky will lead Ukraine's delegation at the conference, where U.S. President Donald Trump's team is expected to outline its diplomatic approach to ending Russia's war against Ukraine.

‘A push for Ukraine’s capitulation’ – Baltic, Eastern Europe react to Trump’s rush to negotiate peace with Putin
Avatar
Tim Zadorozhnyy

Reporter

Tim Zadorozhnyy is the reporter for the Kyiv Independent, specializing in foreign policy, U.S.-Ukraine relations, and political developments across Europe and Russia. Based in Warsaw, he is pursuing studies in International Relations and the European Studies program at Lazarski University, offered in partnership with Coventry University. Tim began his career at a local television channel in Odesa in 2022. After relocating to Warsaw, he spent a year and a half with the Belarusian independent media outlet NEXTA, initially as a news anchor and later as managing editor. Tim is fluent in English, Ukrainian, and Russian.

Read more
News Feed
Video

On Nov. 28, a Russian attack lasting more than 10 hours struck Ukrainian cities, with Kyiv as the main target. The Kyiv Independent’s Nick Allard and Tania Myronyshena spent the night with a Kyiv family sheltering in a parking garage with their three children.

Show More