Leaders from roughly 60 countries gathered in Washington, DC, for a summit convened by Secretary of State Marco Rubio to address what the Trump administration calls an urgent threat of far-left terrorism.
The meeting took place on Thursday. Rubio described left-wing terrorism as a blind spot in counterterrorism efforts and announced new visa restrictions targeting foreigners connected to such activities. He also said the State Department would designate more overseas groups as far-left terrorists.
Rubio compared the effort to the post-9/11 coalition against Islamist extremism. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent spoke about using financial tools to disrupt networks. The administration has already designated four European antifa groups as foreign terrorist organizations.
Data cited in reports show left-wing incidents remain low compared with far-right violence in recent decades. A Center for Strategic and International Studies analysis noted an average of four left-wing incidents per year from 2016 to 2024 versus 22.7 on the right.
Counterterrorism experts questioned the existence of a transnational far-left network. Some expressed concern that expanded designations could affect U.S. citizens and domestic movements.
