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On the very day Donald Trump received a custom-made "award for peace" from his recent friend, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his government published an similarly ostentatious security policy document. This fairly short report is saturated with pure Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the characteristically modest assertion that the president has rescued "the United States and the globe – back from the brink of catastrophe and ruin."

Even though the strategy largely formalizes the ongoing actions and statements of Trump and his cabinet, it must be heeded as a grave caution for the international community, and for Europe in particular.

A Strategy of Intervention 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 lifted directly from speeches by Viktor Orbán during the so-called refugee crisis of 2015-16: "Our desire is for Europe to remain European, to regain its civilizational self-assurance." More worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the real and starker possibility of cultural extinction."

The entire section on Europe is imbued with decades of European right-wing dogma and rhetoric. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "transforming the continent and causing strife, suppression of free expression and stifling of dissent, cratering birthrates, and loss of sovereign identity and self-belief." According to 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 armed forces strong enough to remain reliable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration asserts that "within a few decades 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 points carry strong echoes of two concepts seen as foundational for modern far-right circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "Der Untergang des Abendlandes," whose argument on the cyclical decline of civilizations was employed by the German far right to attack the "decadence" and "enfeeblement" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "The Great Replacement," released in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who transformed long-existing "indigenous" fears into a more explicit conspiracy theory, alleging European elites of using immigration to replace rebellious "native" populations and import a more docile and dependent electorate.

It is the nativist fantasy contained in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the duty, to interfere 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 promote this revival of national spirit, and the increasing influence of nationalist European parties in fact gives cause for great optimism."

The Objective: "Restore European Greatness"

Put simply, the US contends that it is key to its national security to "Make Europe great again," and that the European far right is the sole movement that can achieve this. Therefore, its "overarching strategy for Europe" prioritises "cultivating opposition to Europe’s present path within European nations" – meaning the far right – and "building up the robust nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – specifically "aligned countries that want to reclaim their past glory" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains unclear on methods, it is obvious that a key aim is to push Europe to adopt a sweeping policy on freedom of speech, closer to the US model – especially regarding right-wing speech – and not limited to social media. Another is to normalise relations with Russia; or, as the document phrases it, to "reestablish strategic stability with Russia." Although the country is not explicitly called a future ally, the Trump administration clearly does not regard Russia as an adversary either.

An Ideological Blueprint: 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 Monroe Doctrine of 1823. Articulated 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 "implement a Trump corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine, which involves the US "recruiting" countries worldwide that wish to help protect US national interests.

None of this is entirely new – recall 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 stance is serious. And if the document is too long or imprecise for them, it can be summarised in plain and concise terms: the current US government holds 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 unwilling ally; it is a deliberate adversary. It is time to act accordingly.