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On the exact day Donald Trump received a tailor-made "peace prize" from his newest ally, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his administration published an equally flamboyant security policy document. This fairly short report drips with the essence of Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the characteristically modest claim that the president has brought back "the United States and the globe – back from the brink of catastrophe and ruin."

Even though the strategy mostly formalizes the current actions and statements of Trump and his team, it must be heeded as a grave warning for the world, and for the European continent in particular.

A Strategy of Intervention and Cultural Fear

The document espouses an aggressive form of foreign-policy interference where the US explicitly sets the goal of "promoting European strength." Its language could have been taken directly from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the so-called refugee crisis of 2015-16: "We want Europe to stay European, to regain its civilizational self-assurance." Even more ominously, the document claims that Europe's "economic decline is overshadowed by the genuine and starker prospect of cultural extinction."

The entire section dedicated to Europe is imbued with decades of European far-right ideology and rhetoric. The EU and its migration policies are blamed for "changing the continent and creating conflict, suppression of free expression and suppression of dissent, plummeting 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 some European countries will have economies and militaries powerful enough to remain dependable allies." Indeed, 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 stand up for authentic democracy, freedom of expression, and proud commemorations of European nations’ individual character and past."

Foundational Theories of the Right-Wing

These arguments carry powerful overtones of two theories regarded as core for contemporary far-right circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West," whose thesis on the inevitable fall of civilizations was used by the German far right to criticise the "decadence" and "enfeeblement" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "The Great Replacement," published in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who translated long-existing "indigenous" fears into a more explicit conspiracy theory, accusing European elites of using immigration to replace restive "native" populations and bring in a more docile and reliant electorate.

It is the nationalist fantasy encapsulated in both ideas that gives the Trump administration the right, if not the obligation, to intervene in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is clear where it sees its allies: "The United States encourages its ideological partners in Europe to advance this revival of spirit, and the increasing clout of nationalist European parties in fact gives cause for significant hope."

The Goal: "Restore European Greatness"

Put simply, the US contends that it is essential to its national security to "Make Europe great again," and that the European far right is the sole movement that can accomplish this. Therefore, its "overarching strategy for Europe" focuses on "fostering resistance to Europe’s present path within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "strengthening the healthy nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – in particular "aligned countries that want to restore their past glory" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document stays vague on implementation, it is obvious that a priority is to pressure Europe to adopt a sweeping policy on freedom of speech, closer to the US model – particularly regarding far-right 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 directly called a future ally, the Trump administration evidently does not regard Russia as an adversary either.

A Historical Precedent: The Monroe Doctrine

In a wider context, the national security strategy takes its inspiration less from the glorified US of the 1950s and more from the 1823 policy of 1823. Proclaimed by President James Monroe, this warned 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 vows to "assert and enforce a Trump addition" to the Monroe Doctrine, which involves the US "enlisting" countries worldwide that wish to help protect US national interests.

This is necessarily new – recall JD Vance’s address 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 published in an official document, European leaders will at last realize that the stance is serious. And if the document is too lengthy or imprecise for them, it can be summarised in plain 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 just an reluctant ally; it is a willing adversary. It is time to act accordingly.