🔗 Share this article

On the exact date Donald Trump was presented with a custom-made "award for peace" from his newest ally, FIFA president "Gianni" Infantino, his government released an similarly ostentatious national security strategy. This fairly short report is saturated with the essence of Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the characteristically modest assertion that the president has brought back "the United States and the globe – back from the edge of disaster and disaster."

Even though the document largely codifies the ongoing actions and rhetoric of Trump and his team, it must be taken as a grave warning for the international community, and for the European continent specifically.

A Blueprint of Interference and Civilizational Anxiety

The document espouses an aggressive form of foreign-policy interference where the US explicitly sets the goal of "fostering European strength." Its language seems lifted directly from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the much-discussed refugee crisis of 2015-16: "We want Europe to stay European, to reclaim its civilizational self-assurance." Even more ominously, the document claims that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the genuine and starker possibility of cultural extinction."

The entire section on Europe is steeped in decades of European far-right dogma and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "changing the continent and causing strife, censorship of free expression and suppression of political opposition, plummeting birthrates, and erosion of national identities and self-confidence." Per the document, if "current trajectories continue, the continent will be unrecognizable in 20 years or less. As such, it is not at all clear whether some European countries will have economic power and armed forces strong enough to be dependable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration believes that "within a few decades at the latest, certain NATO members will become majority non-European."

"American diplomacy should continue to stand up for authentic democracy, freedom of expression, and unapologetic celebrations of European nations’ individual character and past."

Core Ideas of the Right-Wing

These arguments carry strong overtones of two concepts seen as core for contemporary right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "Der Untergang des Abendlandes," whose argument on the inevitable fall of civilizations was used by the German far right to attack the "decadence" and "enfeeblement" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "Le Grand Remplacement," released in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who translated long-existing "indigenous" fears into a more overt conspiracy theory, accusing European elites of using immigration to substitute restive "native" populations and import a more submissive and reliant electorate.

It is the nativist fantasy contained in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the right, if not the obligation, to intervene in European affairs, the document implies. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "The United States encourages its political allies in Europe to advance this resurgence of national spirit, and the growing influence of patriotic European parties in fact gives cause for great optimism."

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. Consequently, its "overarching strategy for Europe" focuses on "fostering opposition to Europe’s present path within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "strengthening the healthy nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – specifically "aligned countries that want to reclaim their past glory" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document stays vague on methods, it is apparent that a key aim is to push Europe to adopt a radical policy on freedom of speech, more aligned with the US model – especially regarding far-right speech – and not just on social media. Another is to normalise 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.

A Historical Precedent: The Monroe Doctrine

In a broader sense, the national security strategy takes its inspiration less from the glorified US of the 1950s and more from the 1823 policy of 1823. Articulated by President James Monroe, this warned 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 involves the US "recruiting" countries worldwide that wish to help safeguard US national interests.

None of this is entirely new – recall JD Vance’s address at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president launched an assault on Europe’s democratic model. But perhaps now that it is published in an formal document, European leaders will finally understand that the situation is serious. And if the document is too long or imprecise for them, it can be condensed in clear and succinct terms: the current US government holds that its national security is best served by the demise of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not only an reluctant ally; it is a willing adversary. Now is time to respond accordingly.