On the very date Donald Trump was presented with a tailor-made "peace prize" from his recent ally, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his administration published an similarly flamboyant national security strategy. This relatively brief paper is saturated with pure Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the characteristically modest claim that the president has brought back "the United States and the globe – back from the brink of disaster and ruin."
Even though the document largely formalizes the ongoing policies and statements of Trump and his cabinet, it must be heeded as a serious caution for the world, and for Europe specifically.
The document advocates for an aggressive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US explicitly 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: "Our desire is for Europe to stay European, to reclaim its civilizational self-assurance." Even more ominously, the document claims that Europe's "economic decline is overshadowed by the genuine and more stark possibility of civilizational erasure."
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 "transforming the continent and causing strife, censorship of free speech and stifling of political opposition, cratering birthrates, and erosion of national identities and self-belief." According to the document, if "current trajectories continue, the continent will be unrecognizable in 20 years or less. As such, it is far from obvious whether some European countries will have economies and armed forces strong enough to be dependable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration asserts that "in a matter of years at the latest, certain NATO members will become majority non-European."
"American diplomacy should continue to stand up for genuine democracy, free speech, and unapologetic commemorations of European nations’ individual character and past."
These arguments carry powerful echoes of two concepts seen as foundational for modern right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West," whose argument on the cyclical decline of civilizations was employed by the German far right to criticise the "perversion" 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 "indigenous" fears into a more explicit conspiratorial narrative, accusing European elites of using immigration to replace restive "indigenous" populations and bring in a more submissive and dependent electorate.
It is the nationalist fantasy encapsulated in both ideas that gives the Trump administration the right, if not the duty, to interfere in European affairs, the document implies. And it is evident where it identifies its allies: "America urges its political allies in Europe to promote this revival of national spirit, and the increasing influence of nationalist European parties in fact gives cause for great optimism."
Put simply, the US believes that it is key to its national security to "Restore European strength," and that the European far right is the only political force that can achieve this. Therefore, its "broad policy for Europe" focuses on "cultivating opposition to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "building up the healthy nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – specifically "aligned countries that want to reclaim their past glory" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.
While the document stays unclear on methods, it is apparent that a key aim is to push Europe to adopt a radical policy on freedom of speech, more aligned with the US model – especially 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 clearly does not regard Russia as an enemy either.
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. Articulated by President James Monroe, this warned European powers not to meddle in the "western hemisphere," which he declared to be the US’s zone of influence. The Trump administration’s policy document vows to "implement 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 entirely new – recall JD Vance’s speech 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 formal document, European leaders will finally understand that the stance is grave. And if the document is too long or imprecise for them, it can be summarised in clear and succinct terms: the current US government holds that its national security is best served by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not only an reluctant ally; it is a deliberate adversary. Now is time to respond appropriately.
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