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On the very date Donald Trump was presented with a tailor-made "award for peace" from his recent ally, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his administration published an similarly ostentatious security policy document. This relatively short paper drips with pure Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the characteristically humble claim that the president has brought back "the United States and the globe – back from the edge of catastrophe and disaster."

Even though the document largely codifies the ongoing policies and statements 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 Interference and Civilizational Anxiety

The document espouses an aggressive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US explicitly sets the goal of "promoting European strength." Its rhetoric seems lifted straight from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the so-called refugee crisis of 2015-16: "We want Europe to remain European, to reclaim its civilizational self-confidence." Even more worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "economic decline is eclipsed by the genuine and more stark prospect of civilizational erasure."

The entire section on Europe is imbued with generations of European right-wing ideology and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are blamed for "transforming the continent and causing conflict, suppression of free speech and suppression of dissent, cratering birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-confidence." According to 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 economies and armed forces strong enough to be reliable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration asserts 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, free speech, and unapologetic commemorations of European nations’ unique heritage and past."

Foundational Theories of the Far Right

These points carry strong echoes of two theories seen as foundational for contemporary right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "Der Untergang des Abendlandes," whose thesis on the inevitable fall of civilizations was used by the German far right to criticise the "decadence" 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 "native" fears into a more explicit conspiracy theory, accusing European elites of using immigration to replace rebellious "indigenous" populations and import a more submissive and dependent electorate.

It is the nativist fantasy contained in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the obligation, to intervene 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 advance this resurgence of spirit, and the growing clout of nationalist European parties in fact gives cause for great optimism."

The Objective: "Restore European Greatness"

In other words, the US believes that it is key to its national security to "Restore European strength," and that the European far right is the only political force that can accomplish this. Therefore, its "broad policy for Europe" prioritises "cultivating resistance to Europe’s present path within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "building up 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 unclear on implementation, 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 – especially regarding right-wing speech – and not limited to social media. Another is to normalise 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 evidently does not regard Russia as an enemy 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 Monroe Doctrine of 1823. Proclaimed by President James Monroe, this warned European powers not to interfere in the "western hemisphere," which he proclaimed to be the US’s sphere of interest. The Trump administration’s policy document promises to "assert and enforce a Trump corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine, which entails the US "enlisting" countries worldwide that wish to help safeguard US national interests.

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 situation is grave. And if the document is too lengthy or vague for them, it can be condensed in clear and succinct terms: the current US government believes that its national security is best served by the demise of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not just an unwilling ally; it is a deliberate adversary. Now is time to act accordingly.