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On the very date Donald Trump received a tailor-made "award for peace" from his recent ally, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his government published an similarly ostentatious security policy document. This relatively brief paper drips with the essence of Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the typically modest assertion that the president has rescued "the United States and the globe – back from the edge of catastrophe and ruin."

Even though the strategy largely formalizes the ongoing policies and statements of Trump and his cabinet, it must be taken as a grave caution for the international community, and for the European continent specifically.

A Blueprint of Interference and Civilizational Fear

The document advocates for an assertive form of foreign-policy interference where the US clearly sets the goal of "fostering European strength." Its rhetoric seems taken directly from speeches by Viktor Orbán during the so-called migration emergency of 2015-16: "Our desire is for Europe to remain European, to reclaim its civilizational self-assurance." Even more worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "economic decline is overshadowed by the genuine and starker possibility of civilizational erasure."

The whole section dedicated to Europe is steeped in decades of European far-right ideology and rhetoric. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "changing the continent and causing conflict, censorship of free speech and suppression of dissent, plummeting birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-belief." According to the document, if "present trends continue, the continent will be unrecognisable in 20 years or less. As such, it is far from obvious whether some European countries will have economies and militaries powerful enough to remain dependable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration asserts that "in a matter of years at the latest, some NATO members will become majority non-European."

"U.S. foreign policy should continue to champion authentic democracy, freedom of expression, and unapologetic celebrations of European nations’ unique heritage and history."

Foundational Ideas of the Far Right

These points carry strong echoes of two concepts 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 used by the German far right to criticise the "perversion" and "weakness" 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 docile and reliant electorate.

It is the nationalist fantasy contained in both ideas that gives the Trump administration the authority, if not the duty, to interfere in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "The United States encourages its ideological partners in Europe to advance this resurgence of spirit, and the increasing clout of patriotic European parties indeed gives cause for great optimism."

The Goal: "Make Europe Great Again"

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 only political force that can achieve this. Consequently, its "overarching strategy 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" – in particular "aligned countries that want to restore their former greatness" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.

While the document stays unclear on implementation, 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 right-wing speech – and not just on social media. Another is to normalize relations with Russia; or, as the document phrases it, to "restore strategic stability with Russia." Although the country is not explicitly called a future ally, the Trump administration evidently does not regard Russia as an enemy 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 Monroe Doctrine of 1823. Proclaimed by President James Monroe, this warned European powers not to meddle in the "western hemisphere," which he proclaimed to be the US’s sphere of interest. 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 protect US national interests.

This is necessarily new – consider JD Vance’s speech 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 formal document, European leaders will finally realize that the situation is serious. And if the document is too lengthy or imprecise for them, it can be summarised in clear and succinct terms: the current US government believes that its national security is most enhanced by the demise of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not only an reluctant ally; it is a willing adversary. Now is time to respond accordingly.