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On the exact day Donald Trump received a tailor-made "peace prize" from his newest friend, FIFA president "Gianni" Infantino, his administration released an equally ostentatious security policy document. This relatively short report is saturated with pure Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the characteristically modest assertion that the president has brought back "our nation – and the world – back from the edge of disaster and disaster."

Even though the strategy mostly codifies the current actions and rhetoric of Trump and his team, it must be heeded as a grave warning for the world, and for Europe in particular.

A Strategy of Intervention and Civilizational Anxiety

The document espouses an assertive form of foreign-policy interference where the US explicitly sets the goal of "promoting European strength." Its rhetoric could have been taken directly from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the much-discussed refugee crisis of 2015-16: "We want Europe to remain European, to regain its cultural self-assurance." More worryingly, the document states that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the genuine and starker possibility of civilizational erasure."

The whole section dedicated to Europe is imbued with generations of European far-right dogma and rhetoric. The EU and its migration policies are blamed for "changing the continent and causing conflict, censorship of free speech and suppression of political opposition, cratering birthrates, and erosion of national identities and self-confidence." According to the document, if "present trends 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 powerful enough to be reliable allies." In fact, the Trump administration believes that "in a matter of years at the latest, some NATO members will become predominantly non-European."

"U.S. foreign policy should continue to champion authentic democracy, freedom of expression, and unapologetic celebrations of European nations’ unique heritage and past."

Foundational Ideas of the Right-Wing

These arguments carry powerful echoes of two concepts seen as foundational for contemporary 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 attack the "perversion" and "weakness" 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 overt conspiratorial narrative, alleging European elites of using immigration to replace rebellious "native" populations and bring in a more docile and reliant electorate.

It is the nationalist fantasy contained in both ideas that gives the Trump administration the authority, if not the obligation, to interfere in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is clear where it identifies its allies: "America encourages its political allies in Europe to advance this resurgence of national spirit, and the increasing influence of patriotic European parties indeed gives cause for great optimism."

The Goal: "Make Europe Great Again"

In other words, the US contends that it is essential to its national security to "Restore European strength," and that the European far right is the only political force that can achieve this. Therefore, its "broad policy for Europe" prioritises "fostering resistance to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "building up 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 methods, it is obvious 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 "restore strategic stability with Russia." Although the country is not explicitly called a future ally, the Trump administration clearly does not treat Russia as an enemy either.

A Historical Blueprint: The Monroe Doctrine

In a broader sense, 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 cautioned European powers not to interfere 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 safeguard US national interests.

None of this is necessarily new – consider JD Vance’s address at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president launched an assault on Europe’s democratic model. But maybe now that it is laid out in an official document, European leaders will at last understand that the stance is grave. And if the document is too lengthy or vague 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 only an unwilling ally; it is a willing adversary. It is time to act accordingly.