National security’s Burning Man took place this weekend, as foreign policy types from around the world gathered once again in Bavaria. The Munich Security Conference years ago burst the confines of the Bayerischer Hof hotel, where a medium-sized group of officials and experts once met to talk trans-Atlantic relations. Now it’s a sprawling and frenetic affair, replete with heads of state, bilateral meetings, side events, press conferences, and off-schedule meals. Old touches remain: the Tiki bar, the schnitzel, the smoking section. And while it sometimes feels more cirque than soleil, there is still illumination to be had in Munich.

The new Trump team showed up in force this year: Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe were all there, as was Chairman of the Joint Chiefs C.Q. Brown and a bipartisan delegation from Congress. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke, as did Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and a slew of others from multiple continents. And so, the discussions revealed how leaders and thinkers are dealing with the world today.

Four themes struck me as emblematic of this year’s Munich zeitgeist.