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On the very day Donald Trump received a custom-made "peace prize" from his newest friend, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his administration released an similarly flamboyant national security strategy. This fairly short paper is saturated with the essence of Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the characteristically modest assertion that the president has rescued "the United States and the globe – back from the brink of catastrophe and ruin."

Even though the strategy largely formalizes the current actions and statements of Trump and his team, it must be heeded as a serious caution for the international community, and for the European continent specifically.

A Strategy of Intervention and Cultural Anxiety

The document advocates for an assertive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US explicitly sets the goal of "fostering European greatness." Its language could have been lifted directly from speeches by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the much-discussed migration emergency of 2015-16: "Our desire is for Europe to remain European, to regain its civilizational self-assurance." More worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "economic decline is overshadowed by the real and starker possibility of cultural extinction."

The entire section dedicated to Europe is steeped in generations of European right-wing dogma and rhetoric. The EU and its migration policies are blamed for "transforming the continent and causing conflict, suppression of free speech and suppression of political opposition, plummeting birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-belief." According to 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 armed forces powerful enough to be reliable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration believes that "within a few decades at the latest, some NATO members will become majority non-European."

"U.S. foreign policy should continue to champion authentic democracy, freedom of expression, and unapologetic celebrations of European nations’ individual character and past."

Foundational Theories of the Right-Wing

These arguments carry powerful overtones of two theories regarded as foundational for contemporary right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "Der Untergang des Abendlandes," whose argument on the inevitable fall of civilizations was used by the German far right to criticise the "decadence" and "weakness" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "Le Grand Remplacement," published in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who transformed long-existing "native" fears into a more explicit conspiracy theory, alleging European elites of using immigration to substitute rebellious "native" populations and import a more submissive and reliant electorate.

It is the nationalist fever dream encapsulated in both ideas that gives the Trump administration the authority, if not the duty, to intervene in European affairs, the document implies. And it is clear where it identifies its allies: "America urges its political allies in Europe to advance this resurgence of spirit, and the growing influence of patriotic European parties in fact gives cause for significant hope."

The Goal: "Make Europe Great Again"

In other words, 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 political force that can accomplish this. Consequently, its "overarching strategy for Europe" prioritises "cultivating resistance to Europe’s present path within European nations" – meaning the far right – and "building up the robust nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – specifically "aligned countries that want to restore their past glory" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains unclear on methods, it is apparent that a key aim is to pressure Europe to adopt a sweeping policy on freedom of speech, more aligned with the US model – particularly regarding right-wing speech – and not just on 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 directly called a future ally, the Trump administration evidently does not regard Russia as an enemy either.

An Ideological 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 Monroe Doctrine of 1823. Articulated by President James Monroe, this warned European powers not to interfere in the "Americas," which he declared to be the US’s sphere of interest. The Trump administration’s policy document promises 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.

None of this is entirely new – consider JD Vance’s address at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president launched an assault on Europe’s democratic model. But perhaps now that it is laid out in an official document, European leaders will at last realize that the stance is grave. And if the document is too lengthy or vague for them, it can be summarised in clear and succinct terms: the current US government holds that its national security is most enhanced by the demise of liberal democracy in Europe. To put it bluntly, the US is not only an unwilling ally; it is a willing adversary. Now is time to respond appropriately.