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On the very day Donald Trump received a tailor-made "award for peace" from his newest ally, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his administration published an similarly flamboyant national security strategy. This relatively brief report is saturated with the essence of Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the typically modest assertion that the president has brought back "our nation – and the world – back from the brink of disaster and ruin."

Even though the strategy largely codifies the current actions and rhetoric of Trump and his team, it must be heeded as a grave caution for the world, and for Europe in particular.

A Blueprint of Intervention and Civilizational Fear

The document advocates for an aggressive form of foreign-policy interference where the US clearly sets the goal of "fostering European strength." Its rhetoric could have been taken directly from speeches by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the so-called refugee crisis of 2015-16: "Our desire is for Europe to remain European, to regain its civilizational self-confidence." More worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "economic decline is eclipsed by the real and starker prospect of cultural extinction."

The entire section on Europe is steeped in generations of European far-right dogma and rhetoric. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "changing the continent and creating conflict, suppression of free speech and stifling of dissent, cratering birthrates, and erosion of sovereign identity and self-belief." Per the document, if "current trajectories continue, the continent will be unrecognizable in 20 years or less. As such, it is not at all clear whether certain European countries will have economies and militaries powerful enough to remain dependable allies." In fact, the Trump administration believes that "in a matter of years at the latest, certain NATO members will become majority non-European."

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

Core Theories of the Far Right

These arguments carry strong echoes of two theories regarded as core for contemporary right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West," whose argument on the cyclical decline of civilizations was used by the German far right to attack the "perversion" and "weakness" 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, alleging European elites of using immigration to replace rebellious "native" populations and import a more docile and dependent electorate.

It is the nativist fever dream encapsulated in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the duty, to intervene in European affairs, the document implies. And it is evident where it identifies its allies: "The United States encourages its political allies in Europe to advance this resurgence of spirit, and the growing clout of patriotic European parties indeed gives cause for great optimism."

The Objective: "Restore European Greatness"

In other words, the US believes that it is essential to its national security to "Make Europe great again," and that the European far right is the sole political force that can accomplish this. Consequently, its "overarching strategy for Europe" focuses on "fostering resistance to Europe’s present path within European nations" – meaning the far right – and "strengthening the healthy nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – specifically "nations in agreement that want to restore their past glory" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains vague on implementation, it is apparent that a priority is to push Europe to adopt a sweeping policy on freedom of speech, more aligned with the US model – especially regarding right-wing speech – and not just on social media. Another is to normalise 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 clearly does not treat Russia as an adversary either.

A Historical Precedent: The Monroe Doctrine

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. Proclaimed by President James Monroe, this cautioned European powers not to meddle in the "Americas," which he declared to be the US’s zone of influence. The Trump administration’s policy document promises to "assert and enforce a Trump corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine, which entails 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 unleashed an ideological attack on Europe’s democratic model. But perhaps now that it is published in an official document, European leaders will finally understand that the situation is grave. And if the document is too lengthy or vague for them, it can be condensed in clear and concise terms: the current US government believes that its national security is best served by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not only an unwilling ally; it is a deliberate adversary. It is time to act appropriately.