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On the exact date Donald Trump received a custom-made "peace prize" from his newest friend, FIFA president "Gianni" Infantino, his government released an similarly flamboyant national security strategy. This fairly brief paper drips with pure 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 brink of catastrophe and disaster."

Even though the document mostly codifies the current policies and statements of Trump and his cabinet, it must be taken as a serious warning for the international community, and for Europe in particular.

A Blueprint of Interference and Civilizational Anxiety

The document espouses an aggressive form of foreign-policy interference where the US clearly sets the goal of "promoting European strength." Its language seems lifted directly from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the much-discussed refugee crisis of 2015-16: "Our desire is for Europe to stay European, to reclaim its cultural self-confidence." Even more worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "economic decline is eclipsed by the real and starker possibility of civilizational erasure."

The entire section dedicated to Europe is steeped in generations of European far-right ideology and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "transforming the continent and creating conflict, suppression of free expression and stifling of dissent, plummeting birthrates, and erosion of sovereign identity and self-confidence." According to the document, if "current trajectories continue, the continent will be unrecognisable 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 asserts that "within a few decades at the latest, some NATO members will become majority non-European."

"American diplomacy should continue to stand up for authentic democracy, free speech, and unapologetic celebrations of European nations’ individual character and history."

Core Theories of the Right-Wing

These arguments carry powerful overtones of two concepts seen as core for modern far-right circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "Der Untergang des Abendlandes," whose thesis on the inevitable fall of civilizations was employed by the German far right to attack the "perversion" and "enfeeblement" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "The Great Replacement," released in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who translated long-existing "native" fears into a more overt conspiracy theory, alleging European elites of using immigration to replace restive "native" populations and import a more submissive and reliant electorate.

It is the nativist fantasy encapsulated 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 ideological partners in Europe to promote this resurgence of national spirit, and the increasing clout of nationalist European parties indeed gives cause for significant hope."

The Goal: "Restore European Greatness"

Put simply, the US believes 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 current trajectory within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "strengthening the healthy nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – in particular "aligned countries that want to reclaim their past glory" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document stays unclear on methods, it is obvious that a key aim is to push Europe to adopt a sweeping policy on freedom of speech, more aligned with the US model – especially regarding far-right speech – and not limited to social media. Another is to normalise relations with Russia; or, as the document phrases it, to "restore strategic stability with Russia." Although the country is not directly called a future ally, the Trump administration evidently does not regard Russia as an enemy either.

A Historical Precedent: 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 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 "assert and enforce a Trump corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine, which involves the US "enlisting" countries worldwide that wish to help protect US national interests.

None of this is entirely new – consider JD Vance’s speech at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president unleashed an ideological attack on Europe’s democratic model. But maybe now that it is published in an official document, European leaders will at last understand that the stance is serious. And if the document is too lengthy or imprecise for them, it can be summarised in plain and succinct terms: the current US government believes that its national security is best served by the destruction 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.