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On the very day Donald Trump received a custom-made "award for peace" from his recent ally, FIFA president "Gianni" Infantino, his administration released an similarly ostentatious national security strategy. This relatively short paper is saturated with the essence of Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the characteristically humble assertion that the president has brought back "the United States and the globe – back from the brink of catastrophe and disaster."

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

A Strategy of Intervention and Cultural Fear

The document espouses an aggressive form of foreign-policy interference where the US clearly sets the goal of "fostering European greatness." Its language seems lifted directly from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the so-called migration emergency of 2015-16: "We want Europe to remain European, to reclaim its civilizational self-assurance." Even more worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the genuine and starker prospect of civilizational erasure."

The entire section dedicated to Europe is steeped in generations of European far-right dogma and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are blamed for "changing the continent and causing strife, censorship of free speech and suppression of dissent, cratering birthrates, and erosion 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 certain European countries will have economies and armed forces powerful enough to be reliable allies." Indeed, 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, free speech, and unapologetic celebrations of European nations’ individual character and past."

Foundational Ideas of the Far Right

These points carry powerful overtones of two theories regarded as core for modern right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "Der Untergang des Abendlandes," whose thesis on the cyclical decline of civilizations was employed by the German far right to attack the "perversion" and "enfeeblement" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "Le Grand Remplacement," published in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who translated long-existing "native" fears into a more explicit conspiratorial narrative, accusing European elites of using immigration to substitute restive "indigenous" populations and bring in a more submissive and dependent electorate.

It is the nativist fantasy contained in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the obligation, to interfere in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "The United States urges its ideological partners in Europe to promote this resurgence of national spirit, and the increasing influence of patriotic European parties in fact gives cause for significant hope."

The Goal: "Make Europe Great Again"

Put simply, the US contends that it is key to its national security to "Restore European strength," and that the European far right is the only movement that can achieve this. Consequently, its "overarching strategy for Europe" focuses on "cultivating resistance to Europe’s present path 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 restore their past glory" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains vague 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 – especially regarding right-wing 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 explicitly 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 draws its ideas less from the idealized US of the 1950s and more from the 1823 policy of 1823. Proclaimed by President James Monroe, this cautioned European powers not to interfere in the "Americas," which he proclaimed to be the US’s zone of influence. The Trump administration’s policy document promises to "assert and enforce a Trump addition" to the Monroe Doctrine, which entails the US "enlisting" countries worldwide that wish to help safeguard US national interests.

None of this is necessarily new – consider JD Vance’s speech at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president unleashed an assault on Europe’s democratic model. But maybe now that it is laid out in an formal document, European leaders will finally realize that the situation is grave. And if the document is too lengthy or imprecise for them, it can be condensed in plain 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 just an unwilling ally; it is a deliberate adversary. Now is time to act accordingly.