🔗 Share this article

On the exact date Donald Trump received a tailor-made "peace prize" from his recent friend, FIFA president "Gianni" Infantino, his administration released an similarly ostentatious national security strategy. This fairly brief report is saturated with the essence of Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the characteristically modest claim that the president has brought back "our nation – and the world – back from the edge of catastrophe and disaster."

Even though the strategy largely formalizes the current actions and statements of Trump and his cabinet, it must be taken as a grave warning for the world, and for Europe in particular.

A Blueprint of Interference and Civilizational Anxiety

The document advocates for an assertive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US explicitly sets the goal of "fostering European strength." Its language could have been taken directly from addresses by Viktor Orbán during the so-called migration emergency of 2015-16: "We want Europe to remain European, to reclaim its cultural self-assurance." More ominously, the document claims that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the genuine and starker prospect of civilizational erasure."

The whole section on Europe is steeped in generations of European far-right dogma and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are blamed for "transforming the continent and creating strife, suppression of free speech and stifling of political opposition, plummeting birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-belief." 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 certain European countries will have economic power and militaries strong enough to be reliable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration asserts that "in a matter of years at the latest, some NATO members will become majority non-European."

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

Core Ideas of the Far Right

These points carry strong echoes of two concepts seen as foundational for contemporary 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," released in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who translated long-existing "native" fears into a more explicit conspiratorial narrative, alleging European elites of using immigration to replace rebellious "indigenous" populations and import a more docile and reliant electorate.

It is the nativist fever dream contained in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the duty, to interfere in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "America encourages its ideological partners in Europe to promote this revival of national spirit, and the increasing clout of patriotic European parties in fact gives cause for significant hope."

The Objective: "Restore European Greatness"

In other words, the US believes that it is key to its national security to "Make Europe great again," and that the European far right is the sole political force that can achieve this. Consequently, its "overarching strategy for Europe" focuses on "cultivating opposition to Europe’s present path within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "building up the healthy nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – in particular "nations in agreement that want to reclaim their former greatness" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains unclear on implementation, it is apparent that a priority is to pressure Europe to adopt a radical policy on freedom of speech, closer to the US model – particularly regarding far-right speech – and not limited to social media. Another is to normalize 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 evidently 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 idealized US of the 1950s and more from the 1823 policy of 1823. Proclaimed by President James Monroe, this warned European powers not to meddle in the "western hemisphere," which he declared to be the US’s sphere of interest. The Trump administration’s policy document promises to "assert and enforce a Trump addition" to the Monroe Doctrine, which involves the US "recruiting" countries worldwide that wish to help safeguard US national interests.

This is entirely new – consider 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 at last understand that the stance is grave. And if the document is too lengthy or imprecise for them, it can be summarised in clear and concise terms: the current US government holds that its national security is most enhanced by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not just an unwilling ally; it is a deliberate adversary. Now is time to act appropriately.