U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio sharply criticised the United Nations at the Munich Security Conference, arguing the organisation has failed to deliver outcomes on major conflicts and calling for wide-ranging reform while praising American leadership for driving practical problem solving.

Rubio said the United Nations “could not solve the war in Gaza” and “has not solved the war in Ukraine,” presenting both conflicts as evidence that the institution lacks effective answers to the most pressing matters confronting global security.

He described the U.N. as playing “virtually no role” in ending wars and said it must be reformed to meet its stated purpose.

The remarks came as Washington continues a high-profile diplomatic push on multiple fronts, including efforts to end Russia’s war against Ukraine and manage escalating volatility across the Middle East.

Rubio framed U.S. engagement as results-oriented, portraying American leadership as the central driver of negotiations and de-escalation initiatives that, in his view, are moving faster than multilateral processes.

Rubio’s critique also landed amid wider debate among Western governments about how international institutions should function in an era of heightened great-power competition, widening security threats, and increasingly transactional diplomacy.

In that environment, the U.N.’s consensus-based structure and the political dynamics of the Security Council have repeatedly constrained collective action on the very conflicts Rubio highlighted.