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On the exact day Donald Trump was presented with a custom-made "peace prize" from his newest friend, 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 claim that the president has brought back "the United States and the globe – back from the edge of catastrophe and ruin."

Even though the strategy mostly formalizes the current actions and rhetoric of Trump and his team, it must be taken as a grave caution for the world, and for the European continent specifically.

A Strategy of Intervention and Cultural Fear

The document advocates for an aggressive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US clearly sets the goal of "promoting European strength." Its language could have been lifted directly from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the so-called refugee crisis of 2015-16: "Our desire is for Europe to remain European, to reclaim its civilizational self-confidence." More worryingly, the document states that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the genuine and starker possibility of civilizational erasure."

The entire section dedicated to Europe is imbued with decades of European right-wing ideology and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "changing the continent and creating conflict, censorship of free speech and stifling of dissent, cratering birthrates, and loss 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 far from obvious whether certain European countries will have economies and armed forces powerful enough to remain reliable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration asserts that "within a few decades at the latest, some NATO members will become predominantly non-European."

"American diplomacy should continue to champion authentic democracy, free speech, and unapologetic celebrations of European nations’ unique heritage and past."

Core Ideas of the Far Right

These points carry strong echoes of two concepts regarded 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 employed by the German far right to criticise 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 overt conspiratorial narrative, accusing European elites of using immigration to substitute restive "indigenous" populations and bring in a more submissive and reliant electorate.

It is the nationalist fever dream contained in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the obligation, to intervene in European affairs, the document implies. And it is clear where it identifies its allies: "The United States encourages its ideological partners in Europe to advance this revival of spirit, and the growing clout of patriotic European parties indeed gives cause for significant hope."

The Goal: "Restore European Greatness"

In other words, the US contends that it is key to its national security to "Make Europe great again," and that the European far right is the sole political force that can achieve this. Consequently, 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 robust nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – specifically "nations in agreement that want to reclaim their former greatness" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains unclear on methods, it is apparent that a key aim is to push Europe to adopt a radical policy on freedom of speech, closer to the US model – especially regarding far-right speech – and not limited to social media. Another is to normalise relations with Russia; or, as the document phrases it, to "restore strategic stability with Russia." Although the country is not directly called a future ally, the Trump administration clearly does not regard Russia as an adversary either.

An Ideological Blueprint: The Monroe Doctrine

In a broader sense, 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 interfere in the "western hemisphere," 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 entails the US "recruiting" countries worldwide that wish to help safeguard US national interests.

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 maybe now that it is published in an official document, European leaders will finally understand that the situation is serious. And if the document is too long or vague for them, it can be summarised in plain and succinct terms: the current US government believes that its national security is best served by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. To put it bluntly, the US is not only an unwilling ally; it is a deliberate adversary. It is time to respond appropriately.