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On the exact day Donald Trump received a tailor-made "peace prize" from his newest ally, FIFA president "Gianni" Infantino, his government published an similarly ostentatious national security strategy. This relatively brief report 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 disaster and disaster."

Even though the document largely codifies the current policies and statements of Trump and his team, it must be taken as a serious warning for the international community, and for the European continent specifically.

A Strategy of Intervention and Civilizational Anxiety

The document espouses an assertive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US clearly sets the goal of "promoting European strength." Its rhetoric could have been lifted directly from speeches by Viktor Orbán during the much-discussed refugee crisis of 2015-16: "We want Europe to remain European, to reclaim its civilizational self-assurance." Even more ominously, the document states that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the real and starker prospect of cultural extinction."

The whole section on Europe is imbued with decades of European right-wing ideology and rhetoric. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "changing the continent and creating conflict, censorship of free speech and suppression of political opposition, cratering birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-belief." 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 some European countries will have economies and militaries powerful enough to remain reliable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration asserts that "within a few decades at the latest, certain NATO members will become majority non-European."

"U.S. foreign policy should continue to champion genuine democracy, freedom of expression, and proud commemorations of European nations’ unique heritage and history."

Foundational Ideas of the Right-Wing

These arguments carry strong echoes of two concepts seen as core for modern far-right 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 attack the "decadence" 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 import a more submissive and dependent electorate.

It is the nativist fever dream contained in both ideas that gives the Trump administration the authority, if not the duty, to interfere in European affairs, the document implies. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "The United States urges its ideological partners 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 Goal: "Make Europe Great Again"

Put simply, the US believes 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 "overarching strategy 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" – in particular "nations in agreement that want to restore their past glory" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.

While the document stays unclear on methods, it is obvious that a priority is to pressure Europe to adopt a radical policy on freedom of speech, more aligned with 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 calls it, to "restore 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 Blueprint: The Monroe Doctrine

In a wider context, the national security strategy draws its ideas 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 addition" to the Monroe Doctrine, which involves the US "enlisting" countries worldwide that wish to help safeguard US national interests.

None of this is necessarily new – recall JD Vance’s speech at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president launched an ideological attack on Europe’s democratic model. But maybe now that it is published in an formal document, European leaders will at last understand that the situation is grave. And if the document is too long or vague for them, it can be condensed in plain and concise terms: the current US government holds that its national security is best served 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. It is time to respond accordingly.