🔗 Share this article

On the exact day Donald Trump was presented with a custom-made "peace prize" from his newest ally, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his administration published an equally flamboyant national security strategy. This fairly short report drips with pure Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the typically humble assertion that the president has rescued "our nation – and the world – back from the edge of disaster and ruin."

Even though the strategy mostly formalizes the current policies and statements of Trump and his cabinet, it must be heeded as a grave caution for the international community, and for Europe in particular.

A Blueprint of Intervention and Cultural Anxiety

The document advocates for an assertive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US clearly sets the goal of "fostering European strength." Its rhetoric seems taken directly from speeches by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the so-called migration emergency of 2015-16: "Our desire is for Europe to remain European, to reclaim its cultural self-confidence." Even more worryingly, the document states that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the genuine and starker prospect of civilizational erasure."

The whole section dedicated to Europe is steeped in generations of European right-wing dogma and rhetoric. The EU and its migration policies are blamed for "changing the continent and creating conflict, censorship of free expression and stifling of political opposition, cratering birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-belief." According to the document, if "present trends continue, the continent will be unrecognizable in 20 years or less. As such, it is far from obvious whether certain European countries will have economies and militaries strong enough to remain reliable allies." In fact, the Trump administration believes that "in a matter of years at the latest, some NATO members will become majority non-European."

"U.S. foreign policy should continue to champion authentic democracy, free speech, and proud commemorations of European nations’ individual character and past."

Foundational Theories of the Far Right

These points carry strong overtones of two theories seen as core for modern right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West," whose argument on the cyclical decline of civilizations was used by the German far right to criticise the "decadence" and "enfeeblement" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "Le Grand Remplacement," released in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who transformed long-existing "indigenous" fears into a more explicit conspiratorial narrative, accusing European elites of using immigration to replace restive "native" populations and bring in a more docile and reliant electorate.

It is the nativist fever dream encapsulated in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the obligation, to interfere in European affairs, the document implies. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "America urges its ideological partners in Europe to promote this resurgence of spirit, and the increasing clout of nationalist European parties in fact gives cause for significant hope."

The Objective: "Make Europe Great Again"

In other words, the US contends that it is essential to its national security to "Restore European strength," and that the European far right is the sole political force that can achieve this. Therefore, its "overarching strategy for Europe" prioritises "cultivating resistance to Europe’s present path within European nations" – meaning the far right – and "strengthening the robust nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – in particular "nations in agreement that want to restore their former greatness" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document stays vague on implementation, it is obvious that a priority is to push Europe to adopt a radical policy on freedom of speech, closer to the US model – especially regarding far-right speech – and not just on social media. Another is to normalize relations with Russia; or, as the document phrases it, to "reestablish strategic stability with Russia." Although the country is not directly called a future ally, the Trump administration clearly does not treat Russia as an adversary either.

An Ideological Blueprint: The Monroe Doctrine

In a broader sense, the national security strategy takes its inspiration less from the idealized US of the 1950s and more from the Monroe Doctrine of 1823. Proclaimed by President James Monroe, this warned European powers not to meddle in the "western hemisphere," which he proclaimed to be the US’s zone of influence. The Trump administration’s policy document vows to "implement a Trump addition" to the Monroe Doctrine, which involves the US "recruiting" countries worldwide that wish to help protect US national interests.

None of this is necessarily new – recall JD Vance’s speech at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president launched an ideological attack on Europe’s democratic model. But maybe now that it is laid out in an official document, European leaders will finally realize that the stance is grave. And if the document is too lengthy or imprecise for them, it can be summarised in clear and concise terms: the current US government holds that its national security is best served by the demise of liberal democracy in Europe. To put it bluntly, the US is not just an reluctant ally; it is a deliberate adversary. It is time to respond appropriately.