The US: Not Merely the Continent's Unwilling Ally, But a Adversary Rooted in Far-Right Thought

On the very day Donald Trump received a custom-made "award for peace" from his newest friend, FIFA president "Gianni" Infantino, his government published an equally flamboyant security policy document. This relatively brief paper drips with pure Trump and Trumpism. It begins with the typically humble claim that the president has rescued "our nation – and the world – back from the brink of catastrophe and disaster."

Even though the document mostly formalizes the current actions and statements of Trump and his team, it must be heeded as a serious warning for the international community, and for Europe specifically.

A Blueprint of Interference and Cultural Anxiety

The document espouses an aggressive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US explicitly sets the goal of "fostering European strength." Its language seems taken straight from speeches by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the so-called migration emergency of 2015-16: "We want Europe to stay European, to regain its civilizational self-assurance." Even more worryingly, the document states that Europe's "financial downturn is overshadowed by the genuine and starker possibility of cultural extinction."

The whole section dedicated to Europe is steeped in decades of European right-wing ideology and rhetoric. 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 loss of sovereign identity and self-belief." Per 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 strong enough to remain dependable allies." In fact, the Trump administration asserts that "in a matter of years at the latest, some NATO members will become majority non-European."

"U.S. foreign policy should continue to stand up for authentic democracy, free speech, and proud commemorations of European nations’ individual character and past."

Foundational Theories of the Right-Wing

These points carry strong overtones of two concepts regarded as core for modern far-right circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "Der Untergang des Abendlandes," whose argument on the inevitable fall 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," published in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who translated long-existing "indigenous" fears into a more overt conspiratorial narrative, alleging European elites of using immigration to replace rebellious "indigenous" populations and import a more submissive and dependent electorate.

It is the nationalist fever dream encapsulated in both ideas that grants the Trump administration the authority, if not the obligation, to intervene in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is evident where it identifies its allies: "America encourages its ideological partners in Europe to advance this revival of national spirit, and the growing clout of nationalist European parties in fact gives cause for significant hope."

The Objective: "Restore European Greatness"

In other words, the US contends that it is key to its national security to "Make Europe great again," and that the European far right is the sole movement that can achieve this. Consequently, its "overarching strategy for Europe" focuses on "fostering opposition to Europe’s present path within European nations" – meaning the far right – and "building up the healthy nations of central, eastern, and southern Europe" – in particular "nations in agreement that want to reclaim their former greatness" – a clear reference to Hungary and Italy.

While the document remains vague on methods, it is obvious that a key aim is to pressure Europe to adopt a sweeping 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 evidently does not regard 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 Monroe Doctrine 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 vows to "assert and enforce a Trump corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine, which involves the US "recruiting" countries worldwide that wish to help protect US national interests.

None of this is entirely new – recall JD Vance’s speech at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president unleashed an assault on Europe’s democratic model. But maybe now that it is laid out in an formal document, European leaders will at last understand that the situation is serious. And if the document is too lengthy or vague for them, it can be condensed in clear and succinct terms: the current US government holds that its national security is most enhanced by the destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. In other words, the US is not only an reluctant ally; it is a deliberate adversary. It is time to respond accordingly.