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On the exact date Donald Trump was presented with a custom-made "peace prize" from his newest friend, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his government released an similarly flamboyant national security strategy. This relatively short paper is saturated with the essence of Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the typically modest claim that the president has brought back "our nation – and the world – back from the brink of catastrophe and disaster."

Even though the strategy mostly formalizes the current policies and statements of Trump and his team, it must be taken as a serious caution for the international community, and for Europe in particular.

A Strategy of Intervention and Civilizational Anxiety

The document advocates for an aggressive form of foreign-policy interference where the US explicitly sets the goal of "fostering European strength." Its language seems lifted directly from speeches by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the much-discussed refugee crisis of 2015-16: "Our desire is for Europe to stay European, to regain its cultural self-assurance." Even more worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the real and more stark prospect of cultural extinction."

The entire section dedicated to Europe is imbued with decades of European right-wing dogma 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, cratering birthrates, and erosion of sovereign identity 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 remain reliable allies." In fact, the Trump administration believes that "within a few decades at the latest, some NATO members will become majority non-European."

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

Foundational Theories of the Far Right

These arguments carry strong overtones of two theories seen as foundational for modern right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West," whose thesis on the cyclical decline of civilizations was employed by the German far right to attack the "perversion" and "enfeeblement" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "Le Grand Remplacement," released in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who transformed long-existing "native" fears into a more explicit conspiratorial narrative, accusing European elites of using immigration to substitute restive "indigenous" populations and bring in a more submissive and dependent electorate.

It is the nativist fever dream contained in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the right, if not the obligation, to intervene in European affairs, the document implies. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "America urges its ideological partners in Europe to promote this revival of national spirit, and the growing clout of nationalist European parties indeed gives cause for significant hope."

The Objective: "Make Europe Great Again"

In other words, the US contends 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 accomplish this. Therefore, its "overarching strategy for Europe" focuses on "fostering opposition to Europe’s present path within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "building up the healthy nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – in particular "aligned countries that want to restore their former greatness" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.

While the document stays vague on methods, it is obvious 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 just on social media. Another is to normalize relations with Russia; or, as the document calls it, to "reestablish strategic stability with Russia." Although the country is not directly called a future ally, the Trump administration evidently does not regard Russia as an adversary either.

An Ideological Precedent: The Monroe Doctrine

In a wider context, the national security strategy draws its ideas less from the idealized US of the 1950s and more from the 1823 policy of 1823. Articulated by President James Monroe, this cautioned 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 vows to "assert and enforce a Trump corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine, which involves the US "recruiting" 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 laid out in an official document, European leaders will finally understand that the stance is serious. And if the document is too long or vague for them, it can be summarised in clear and concise terms: the current US government believes that its national security is most enhanced by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. To put it bluntly, the US is not only an reluctant ally; it is a willing adversary. It is time to act appropriately.