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On the exact date Donald Trump received a custom-made "award for peace" from his recent friend, FIFA president "Gianni" Infantino, his administration published an similarly ostentatious security policy document. This fairly brief report drips with the essence of Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the characteristically humble claim that the president has brought back "our nation – and the world – back from the edge of disaster and disaster."

Even though the document mostly formalizes the current policies and rhetoric of Trump and his cabinet, it must be taken as a grave caution for the international community, and for the European continent specifically.

A Strategy of Interference and Cultural Fear

The document espouses an aggressive form of foreign-policy interference where the US clearly sets the goal of "promoting European greatness." Its rhetoric seems taken directly from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the so-called migration emergency of 2015-16: "We want Europe to remain European, to reclaim its cultural self-assurance." Even more worryingly, the document states that Europe's "financial downturn is eclipsed by the genuine and starker prospect of cultural extinction."

The whole section dedicated to Europe is imbued with decades of European right-wing ideology and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "changing the continent and causing conflict, censorship of free speech and suppression of political opposition, plummeting birthrates, and loss of sovereign identity and self-confidence." Per the document, if "current trajectories continue, the continent will be unrecognisable in 20 years or less. As such, it is not at all clear whether certain European countries will have economic power and armed forces strong enough to remain dependable 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 unapologetic commemorations of European nations’ individual character and history."

Foundational Theories of the Far Right

These points carry strong echoes of two theories regarded as foundational for modern right-wing 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 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 transformed long-existing "native" fears into a more overt conspiratorial narrative, alleging European elites of using immigration to replace rebellious "indigenous" populations and bring in a more docile and reliant electorate.

It is the nativist fantasy encapsulated in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the right, if not the duty, to interfere in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "America urges its ideological partners in Europe to advance this revival of national spirit, and the growing influence of nationalist European parties indeed gives cause for great optimism."

The Objective: "Make Europe Great Again"

Put simply, the US contends that it is key to its national security to "Restore European strength," and that the European far right is the sole movement that can accomplish this. Therefore, its "broad policy for Europe" prioritises "cultivating opposition 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 remains unclear on implementation, it is obvious that a priority 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 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 treat Russia as an adversary either.

An Ideological Blueprint: 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 1823 policy 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 "implement a Trump addition" to the Monroe Doctrine, which involves the US "recruiting" countries worldwide that wish to help safeguard US national interests.

None of 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 perhaps now that it is published in an official document, European leaders will at last realize that the situation is grave. And if the document is too lengthy or imprecise for them, it can be condensed in clear and succinct terms: the current US government holds that its national security is best served 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. Now is time to respond appropriately.