America: More Than Just Europe's Unwilling Ally, But a Foe Steeped in Right-Wing Thought

On the very date Donald Trump received a tailor-made "peace prize" from his newest ally, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his government published an equally flamboyant national security strategy. This relatively brief paper is saturated with pure Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the typically humble assertion that the president has rescued "the United States and the globe – back from the brink of disaster and disaster."

Even though the strategy largely formalizes the current actions and rhetoric of Trump and his team, it must be taken as a grave caution for the international community, and for Europe specifically.

A Blueprint of Interference and Cultural Anxiety

The document advocates for an aggressive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US explicitly sets the goal of "fostering European strength." Its rhetoric seems taken straight from speeches by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the much-discussed refugee crisis of 2015-16: "We want Europe to remain European, to reclaim its cultural self-confidence." More worryingly, the document claims that Europe's "economic decline is eclipsed by the genuine and more stark prospect of civilizational erasure."

The whole section on Europe is imbued with generations of European right-wing ideology and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "transforming the continent and creating strife, censorship of free expression and stifling of political opposition, plummeting birthrates, and erosion of national identities and self-belief." According to the document, if "present trends continue, the continent will be unrecognizable in 20 years or less. As such, it is far from obvious whether some 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 majority non-European."

"U.S. foreign policy should continue to champion authentic democracy, freedom of expression, and proud celebrations of European nations’ individual character and history."

Foundational Ideas of the Far Right

These arguments carry strong echoes of two concepts seen as foundational for contemporary far-right circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West," whose argument on the inevitable fall 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 "native" fears into a more overt conspiratorial narrative, accusing European elites of using immigration to substitute restive "indigenous" populations and bring in a more submissive and dependent electorate.

It is the nativist fantasy contained in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the right, if not the obligation, to intervene in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is clear where it identifies its allies: "America urges its political allies in Europe to promote this revival of national spirit, and the growing clout of nationalist 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 movement that can achieve this. Consequently, its "overarching strategy for Europe" prioritises "fostering resistance to Europe’s present path within European nations" – understood as the far right – and "strengthening the robust nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – in particular "aligned countries that want to reclaim their past glory" – such as Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains unclear on methods, it is apparent that a priority is to pressure Europe to adopt a sweeping policy on freedom of speech, closer to the US model – particularly regarding far-right speech – and not limited to social media. Another is to normalise 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 Precedent: The Monroe Doctrine

In a wider context, the national security strategy takes its inspiration less from the idealized US of the 1950s and more from the Monroe Doctrine of 1823. Articulated by President James Monroe, this cautioned European powers not to interfere in the "western hemisphere," which he proclaimed to be the US’s zone of influence. The Trump administration’s policy document promises to "implement a Trump corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine, which entails the US "recruiting" countries worldwide that wish to help protect US national interests.

None of this is necessarily new – recall JD Vance’s speech at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president launched an ideological attack on Europe’s democratic model. But maybe now that it is published in an formal document, European leaders will at last realize that the stance is serious. And if the document is too long or vague for them, it can be summarised in clear and concise terms: the current US government believes that its national security is most enhanced by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not just an unwilling ally; it is a willing adversary. It is time to act accordingly.