Rubio heads to Central Asia as some wonder if he's keeping the most pressing matters at a distance

WASHINGTON (AP) — For the 31st time as secretary of state, Marco Rubio has left on a trip abroad, flying to Uzbekistan and later India amid rumblings that America’s top diplomat is ignoring pressing matters in favor of politically safer visits and meetings. This tour is intended to promote U.S. economic and security ties with Central and South Asia.

But it has only tangential links to the Trump administration’s current main foreign policy dilemmas in the Middle East and with the Russia-Ukraine war. Rubio has been unapologetic about his role as both President Donald Trump’s chief diplomat and national security adviser and has brushed aside suggestions that he is eschewing the most difficult issues in favor of taking on lower-hanging diplomatic fruit with less risk of failure and political damage. “It’s an important relationship,” Rubio told reporters Saturday before departing Washington, noting that he selected a time when the Central Asian leaders would be able to meet.

“One of the things that suffers is the strategic visits — you’re always visiting someplace where there’s a crisis or there’s a problem, or you’re going because there’s a conference, but there’s countries you’d like to get to because we want to build our relationships with them.” The State Department pushed back on any criticism of Rubio’s schedule. It says Rubio’s “responsibility is not to generate a public profile around every challenge; it is to help the president develop and execute a strategy that advances American interests. Some of the most consequential diplomatic work takes place outside the public spotlight.” In both roles, Rubio must also “look at these challenges as part of a larger strategic picture,” the department said in a lengthy emailed reply to queries from The Associated Press.

“The Iran, Gaza, and the Russia-Ukraine conflicts each demand serious attention, but they cannot be approached in isolation from the president’s broader national security objectives. The right question is not whether the secretary is visible enough on a particular issue.” Rubio is involved in many things at once Rubio is involved in behind-the-scenes discussions on Iran, Lebanon, Gaza, Russia-Ukraine and China, although he has not been the public face of any of them. The Republican president’s special envoys such as Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner and Tom Barrack have taken the lead on those matters.