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On the exact date Donald Trump received a tailor-made "peace prize" from his recent friend, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his administration published an similarly ostentatious security policy document. This fairly short paper is saturated with pure Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the characteristically modest claim that the president has brought back "our nation – and the world – back from the edge of catastrophe and ruin."

Even though the strategy largely formalizes the current actions and rhetoric of Trump and his team, it must be taken as a grave caution for the world, and for the European continent in particular.

A Blueprint of Intervention and Cultural Fear

The document espouses an aggressive form of foreign-policy interference where the US clearly sets the goal of "fostering European greatness." Its language seems lifted straight from speeches by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the much-discussed migration emergency of 2015-16: "We want Europe to remain European, to regain its civilizational self-confidence." More worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "financial downturn is eclipsed by the real and more stark possibility of civilizational erasure."

The whole section on Europe is imbued with generations of European right-wing dogma and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "transforming the continent and causing strife, censorship of free expression and suppression of dissent, cratering birthrates, and loss 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 far from obvious whether certain European countries will have economic power and armed forces powerful enough to remain dependable allies." In fact, the Trump administration asserts that "within a few decades at the latest, some NATO members will become majority non-European."

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

Foundational Theories of the Right-Wing

These arguments carry strong echoes of two concepts regarded as core for modern right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West," whose argument on the inevitable fall of civilizations was employed 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 translated long-existing "indigenous" fears into a more explicit conspiratorial narrative, accusing European elites of using immigration to substitute rebellious "native" populations and bring in a more submissive and dependent electorate.

It is the nationalist fantasy encapsulated in both ideas that gives the Trump administration the authority, if not the obligation, to interfere in European affairs, the document implies. And it is evident where it identifies its allies: "America urges its political allies in Europe to promote this resurgence of spirit, and the growing clout of nationalist European parties indeed gives cause for significant hope."

The Goal: "Make Europe Great Again"

Put simply, 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 movement that can accomplish this. Consequently, its "broad policy for Europe" focuses on "fostering opposition to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "strengthening the robust nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – in particular "aligned countries that want to reclaim their former greatness" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.

While the document stays vague 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 – particularly regarding far-right speech – and not limited to 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 clearly does not regard Russia as an enemy either.

A Historical Precedent: The Monroe Doctrine

In a wider context, the national security strategy draws its ideas less from the glorified US of the 1950s and more from the Monroe Doctrine of 1823. Proclaimed by President James Monroe, this cautioned European powers not to interfere in the "Americas," which he proclaimed to be the US’s sphere of interest. The Trump administration’s policy document promises 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 necessarily new – consider JD Vance’s speech at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president unleashed an assault on Europe’s democratic model. But maybe now that it is laid out in an formal 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 condensed in clear and concise terms: the current US government holds that its national security is most enhanced by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not just an reluctant ally; it is a willing adversary. Now is time to respond appropriately.