🔗 Share this article

On the exact day Donald Trump received a tailor-made "award for peace" from his newest friend, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his administration released an similarly ostentatious national security strategy. This fairly brief paper is saturated with pure Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the characteristically humble assertion that the president has brought back "our nation – and the world – back from the brink of catastrophe and ruin."

Even though the strategy mostly codifies the current actions and statements of Trump and his cabinet, it must be taken as a serious warning for the world, and for Europe specifically.

A Blueprint of Intervention and Civilizational Anxiety

The document advocates for an aggressive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US explicitly sets the goal of "promoting European strength." Its language seems lifted directly from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the so-called refugee crisis of 2015-16: "We want Europe to stay European, to regain its civilizational self-assurance." More ominously, the document claims that Europe's "economic decline is overshadowed by the real and more stark possibility of cultural extinction."

The entire section dedicated to Europe is steeped in decades of European right-wing dogma and rhetoric. The EU and its migration policies are blamed for "transforming the continent and creating conflict, suppression of free speech and stifling of political opposition, cratering birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-belief." Per the document, if "present trends 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 economies and militaries strong enough to remain reliable allies." In fact, 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 champion genuine democracy, free speech, and unapologetic celebrations of European nations’ unique heritage and history."

Foundational Ideas of the Far Right

These arguments carry strong echoes of two concepts regarded as foundational for contemporary far-right circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "Der Untergang des Abendlandes," whose thesis on the inevitable fall of civilizations was used by the German far right to attack the "decadence" and "weakness" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "The Great Replacement," released in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who translated long-existing "indigenous" fears into a more overt conspiratorial narrative, alleging European elites of using immigration to replace rebellious "indigenous" populations and bring in a more submissive and reliant electorate.

It is the nationalist fantasy contained in both ideas that gives the Trump administration the authority, if not the obligation, to interfere in European affairs, the document implies. And it is evident where it identifies its allies: "The United States encourages its ideological partners in Europe to advance this revival of spirit, and the growing influence of patriotic European parties indeed gives cause for great optimism."

The Goal: "Make Europe Great Again"

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 only movement that can achieve this. Consequently, its "broad policy for Europe" focuses on "cultivating resistance to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "building up the healthy 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 stays unclear on methods, 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 – particularly regarding right-wing speech – and not limited to social media. Another is to normalize 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 clearly does not treat Russia as an enemy either.

An Ideological Blueprint: 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. Proclaimed by President James Monroe, this warned European powers not to interfere in the "Americas," which he declared to be the US’s zone of influence. The Trump administration’s policy document vows to "assert and enforce a Trump corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine, which entails the US "enlisting" countries worldwide that wish to help protect US national interests.

This is necessarily new – recall JD Vance’s address at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president unleashed an assault on Europe’s democratic model. But perhaps now that it is published in an official document, European leaders will finally understand that the situation is serious. And if the document is too lengthy or vague for them, it can be condensed in plain and succinct terms: the current US government believes that its national security is most enhanced by the demise of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not just an reluctant ally; it is a willing adversary. Now is time to respond accordingly.