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On the exact date Donald Trump was presented with a tailor-made "award for peace" from his recent friend, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his administration published an similarly ostentatious security policy document. This fairly brief report drips with pure Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the typically humble assertion that the president has brought back "the United States and the globe – back from the brink of catastrophe and disaster."

Even though the document mostly codifies the ongoing policies and rhetoric of Trump and his team, it must be heeded as a serious 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 meddling where the US clearly sets the goal of "promoting European strength." Its rhetoric seems lifted straight from addresses by Viktor Orbán 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 real and starker prospect of civilizational erasure."

The entire section dedicated to Europe is steeped in generations of European right-wing dogma and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "changing the continent and creating strife, suppression of free expression and suppression of political opposition, plummeting birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-confidence." According to the document, if "current trajectories continue, the continent will be unrecognizable in 20 years or less. As such, it is far from obvious whether some European countries will have economic power and militaries powerful enough to remain dependable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration believes that "in a matter of years at the latest, certain NATO members will become majority non-European."

"U.S. foreign policy should continue to champion genuine democracy, freedom of expression, and proud commemorations of European nations’ unique heritage and past."

Foundational Theories of the Right-Wing

These points carry strong echoes of two concepts regarded as core for contemporary right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West," whose thesis on the cyclical decline of civilizations was employed by the German far right to criticise the "perversion" and "enfeeblement" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "Le Grand Remplacement," released 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 substitute rebellious "native" populations and import a more docile and dependent electorate.

It is the nationalist fantasy contained in both ideas that gives the Trump administration the authority, if not the duty, to interfere in European affairs, the document implies. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "The United States encourages its political allies in Europe to promote this revival of spirit, and the increasing influence of patriotic European parties indeed gives cause for great optimism."

The Objective: "Make Europe Great Again"

In other words, the US contends 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 achieve this. Therefore, its "broad policy for Europe" focuses on "fostering opposition to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations" – meaning the far right – and "building up the healthy nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – in particular "aligned countries that want to reclaim their past glory" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.

While the document stays vague on methods, it is apparent that a priority is to pressure Europe to adopt a radical policy on freedom of speech, more aligned with the US model – especially regarding right-wing 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 regard Russia as an enemy either.

An Ideological 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. Articulated by President James Monroe, this cautioned European powers not to meddle in the "Americas," 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 protect US national interests.

This is necessarily 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 official document, European leaders will at last understand that the situation is serious. And if the document is too lengthy or imprecise for them, it can be condensed in plain and succinct terms: the current US government believes that its national security is best served by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. To put it bluntly, the US is not just an unwilling ally; it is a willing adversary. It is time to respond accordingly.