🔗 Share this article

On the exact day Donald Trump received a tailor-made "award for peace" from his recent ally, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his government published an similarly flamboyant national security strategy. This fairly short report drips with the essence of Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the characteristically humble claim that the president has brought back "the United States and the globe – back from the edge of disaster and disaster."

Even though the strategy largely formalizes the ongoing actions and rhetoric of Trump and his team, it must be taken as a serious caution for the world, and for Europe in particular.

A Strategy of Intervention and Cultural Anxiety

The document espouses an assertive form of foreign-policy interference where the US clearly sets the goal of "fostering European greatness." Its language seems taken straight from speeches by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the much-discussed migration emergency of 2015-16: "We want Europe to stay European, to regain its cultural self-confidence." Even more worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the real and starker prospect of civilizational erasure."

The entire section dedicated to Europe is imbued with generations of European far-right ideology and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "changing the continent and creating conflict, censorship of free expression and stifling of political opposition, plummeting birthrates, and erosion of sovereign identity 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 economic power and militaries powerful enough to be reliable allies." In fact, the Trump administration believes that "in a matter of years at the latest, certain NATO members will become predominantly non-European."

"American diplomacy should continue to champion authentic democracy, free speech, and proud commemorations of European nations’ individual character and history."

Core Ideas of the Right-Wing

These arguments carry strong echoes of two concepts regarded as foundational for contemporary far-right circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West," whose thesis on the cyclical decline of civilizations was employed by the German far right to attack the "perversion" and "weakness" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "The Great Replacement," published in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who translated long-existing "indigenous" fears into a more explicit conspiratorial narrative, alleging European elites of using immigration to substitute restive "indigenous" populations and import a more submissive and reliant electorate.

It is the nativist fantasy contained in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the duty, to intervene in European affairs, the document implies. And it is clear where it sees its allies: "America urges its political allies in Europe to advance this revival of spirit, and the growing clout of nationalist European parties indeed gives cause for significant hope."

The Goal: "Restore European Greatness"

Put simply, the US contends that it is essential to its national security to "Make Europe great again," and that the European far right is the sole movement that can accomplish this. Therefore, its "broad policy for Europe" focuses on "cultivating opposition to Europe’s present path within European nations" – meaning the far right – and "strengthening the robust nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – specifically "aligned countries that want to restore their former greatness" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains unclear on methods, it is obvious that a priority is to push Europe to adopt a radical policy on freedom of speech, more aligned with the US model – especially regarding right-wing speech – and not just on social media. Another is to normalise relations with Russia; or, as the document calls it, to "reestablish strategic stability with Russia." Although the country is not directly called a future ally, the Trump administration evidently does not treat Russia as an enemy either.

A Historical Blueprint: The Monroe Doctrine

In a wider context, the national security strategy takes its inspiration less from the glorified US of the 1950s and more from the Monroe Doctrine of 1823. Articulated by President James Monroe, this cautioned European powers not to interfere in the "western hemisphere," which he declared to be the US’s sphere of interest. The Trump administration’s policy document vows to "implement a Trump corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine, which entails the US "recruiting" countries worldwide that wish to help protect US national interests.

None of this is entirely new – consider JD Vance’s address at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president launched an assault on Europe’s democratic model. But maybe now that it is laid out in an official document, European leaders will finally realize that the situation is grave. And if the document is too lengthy or vague for them, it can be condensed in clear and concise terms: the current US government believes that its national security is best served by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. To put it bluntly, the US is not just an unwilling ally; it is a deliberate adversary. It is time to act accordingly.