🔗 Share this article

On the very day Donald Trump received a custom-made "peace prize" from his recent friend, FIFA president "Gianni" Infantino, his administration released an similarly flamboyant national security strategy. This relatively brief report drips with pure Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the characteristically humble claim that the president has brought back "the United States and the globe – back from the edge of catastrophe and disaster."

Even though the strategy largely codifies the ongoing actions and statements of Trump and his cabinet, it must be taken as a grave caution for the world, and for the European continent in particular.

A Strategy of Intervention and Cultural Fear

The document espouses an assertive form of foreign-policy interference where the US explicitly sets the goal of "promoting European strength." Its language seems lifted directly from addresses by Viktor Orbán during the much-discussed refugee crisis of 2015-16: "We want Europe to stay European, to regain its civilizational self-assurance." More worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "financial downturn is eclipsed by the genuine and starker possibility 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 speech and suppression of dissent, cratering birthrates, and erosion of national identities and self-confidence." Per the document, if "current trajectories continue, the continent will be unrecognisable in 20 years or less. As such, it is far from obvious whether some European countries will have economies and militaries powerful enough to remain dependable allies." In fact, the Trump administration asserts that "within a few decades at the latest, certain NATO members will become majority non-European."

"American diplomacy should continue to champion genuine democracy, freedom of expression, and proud commemorations of European nations’ unique heritage and history."

Foundational Theories of the Far Right

These points carry strong echoes of two theories regarded as foundational for modern far-right circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "Der Untergang des Abendlandes," whose thesis 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 "The Great Replacement," published 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 substitute restive "indigenous" populations and import a more submissive and reliant electorate.

It is the nativist fantasy encapsulated in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the duty, to intervene in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is clear where it sees its allies: "America urges its ideological partners in Europe to advance this resurgence of spirit, and the increasing clout of patriotic European parties indeed gives cause for great optimism."

The Goal: "Restore European Greatness"

In other words, the US believes that it is key to its national security to "Restore European strength," and that the European far right is the sole movement that can achieve this. Therefore, its "broad policy for Europe" prioritises "fostering resistance to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "strengthening the robust nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – specifically "nations in agreement that want to reclaim their past glory" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document stays unclear on implementation, it is apparent that a priority 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 limited to social media. Another is to normalise relations with Russia; or, as the document calls it, to "restore strategic stability with Russia." Although the country is not explicitly called a future ally, the Trump administration evidently does not regard Russia as an adversary either.

An Ideological Blueprint: The Monroe Doctrine

In a wider context, the national security strategy takes its inspiration less from the idealized US of the 1950s and more from the 1823 policy of 1823. Articulated by President James Monroe, this cautioned European powers not to meddle in the "western hemisphere," which he declared 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 entails the US "recruiting" countries worldwide that wish to help safeguard 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 ideological attack on Europe’s democratic model. But perhaps now that it is laid out in an formal document, European leaders will at last realize that the situation is grave. And if the document is too long or imprecise for them, it can be summarised in plain and concise terms: the current US government holds that its national security is best served by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. To put it bluntly, the US is not only an unwilling ally; it is a willing adversary. It is time to respond appropriately.