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On the very date Donald Trump was presented with a tailor-made "award for peace" from his recent friend, FIFA president "Gianni" Infantino, his government published an similarly flamboyant national security strategy. This fairly short paper drips with pure Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the typically modest assertion that the president has rescued "the United States and the globe – back from the edge of disaster and ruin."

Even though the strategy largely formalizes the current policies and statements of Trump and his cabinet, it must be heeded as a serious caution for the international community, and for Europe specifically.

A Blueprint of Interference and Civilizational Fear

The document espouses an aggressive form of foreign-policy interference where the US explicitly sets the goal of "fostering European greatness." Its language could have been taken directly from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the much-discussed migration emergency of 2015-16: "We want Europe to remain European, to regain its civilizational self-confidence." Even more ominously, the document states that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the real and more stark possibility of cultural extinction."

The whole section dedicated to Europe is imbued with generations of European right-wing ideology and rhetoric. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "transforming the continent and causing strife, suppression of free expression and suppression of political opposition, plummeting birthrates, and loss 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 not at all clear whether certain European countries will have economic power and militaries powerful enough to be dependable 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 stand up for authentic democracy, free speech, and proud celebrations of European nations’ unique heritage and past."

Foundational Theories of the Right-Wing

These points carry powerful overtones of two theories seen as foundational for modern right-wing 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 "perversion" and "enfeeblement" 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 overt conspiracy theory, accusing European elites of using immigration to substitute restive "native" populations and import a more submissive and reliant electorate.

It is the nationalist fantasy encapsulated in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the right, if not the obligation, to interfere in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "America encourages its political allies in Europe to advance this revival of national spirit, and the increasing clout of nationalist European parties in fact gives cause for great optimism."

The Objective: "Restore European Greatness"

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 accomplish this. Consequently, its "broad policy for Europe" prioritises "cultivating resistance to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations" – meaning the far right – and "building up the healthy nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – specifically "nations in agreement that want to reclaim their past glory" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains vague on methods, it is obvious that a key aim is to push Europe to adopt a sweeping policy on freedom of speech, more aligned with the US model – particularly regarding far-right speech – and not just on 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 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 glorified US of the 1950s and more from the Monroe Doctrine of 1823. Proclaimed by President James Monroe, this warned European powers not to meddle in the "Americas," which he proclaimed 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 speech at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president unleashed an ideological attack on Europe’s democratic model. But maybe now that it is published in an official document, European leaders will at last understand that the stance is serious. And if the document is too long or imprecise for them, it can be condensed in plain and succinct terms: the current US government holds that its national security is most enhanced by the demise of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not just an unwilling ally; it is a deliberate adversary. It is time to respond accordingly.