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On the exact date Donald Trump was presented with a tailor-made "award for peace" from his recent friend, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his government published an equally ostentatious national security strategy. This fairly short paper drips with pure Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the characteristically modest claim that the president has brought back "our nation – and the world – back from the edge of disaster and ruin."

Even though the document 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 specifically.

A Blueprint of Interference and Cultural Fear

The document advocates for an assertive form of foreign-policy interference where the US explicitly sets the goal of "promoting European greatness." Its language could have been taken directly from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the so-called migration emergency of 2015-16: "Our desire is for Europe to remain European, to reclaim its cultural self-assurance." More worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the real and more stark possibility of cultural extinction."

The whole section on Europe is steeped in decades of European right-wing dogma and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are blamed for "changing the continent and causing strife, suppression of free expression and suppression of dissent, plummeting birthrates, and erosion of sovereign identity and self-belief." According to the document, if "current trajectories continue, the continent will be unrecognisable in 20 years or less. As such, it is far from obvious whether certain European countries will have economic power and militaries powerful enough to be reliable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration asserts that "within a few decades at the latest, certain NATO members will become predominantly non-European."

"U.S. foreign policy should continue to champion genuine democracy, free speech, and unapologetic celebrations of European nations’ unique heritage and past."

Core Ideas of the Far Right

These arguments carry powerful echoes of two concepts regarded as core for contemporary far-right 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 attack the "decadence" and "weakness" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "The Great Replacement," published in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who translated long-existing "native" fears into a more explicit conspiratorial narrative, alleging European elites of using immigration to replace rebellious "indigenous" populations and bring in a more docile and dependent electorate.

It is the nativist fantasy encapsulated in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the obligation, to interfere in European affairs, the document implies. And it is clear where it sees its allies: "The United States encourages its political allies in Europe to promote this revival of national spirit, and the increasing clout of patriotic European parties indeed gives cause for significant hope."

The Goal: "Make Europe Great Again"

In other words, the US believes that it is essential to its national security to "Restore European strength," 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 present path within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "strengthening the robust nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – specifically "nations in agreement that want to restore their former greatness" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains vague on implementation, it is apparent that a key aim is to pressure Europe to adopt a radical policy on freedom of speech, more aligned with 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 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 enemy either.

An Ideological Precedent: The Monroe Doctrine

In a wider context, the national security strategy takes its inspiration 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 interfere in the "Americas," which he declared to be the US’s sphere of interest. 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 safeguard US national interests.

This is entirely 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 perhaps now that it is published in an formal 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 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. Now is time to respond accordingly.