America: More Than Just the Continent's Reluctant Ally, But a Foe Steeped in Right-Wing Thought

On the very day Donald Trump received a tailor-made "award for peace" from his recent ally, FIFA president "Johnny" Infantino, his government released an similarly flamboyant security policy document. This fairly brief paper is saturated with pure Trump and Trumpism. It opens with the typically modest claim that the president has brought back "our nation – and the world – back from the brink of disaster and ruin."

Even though the strategy mostly codifies the current actions and statements of Trump and his team, it must be taken as a serious caution for the international community, and for Europe specifically.

A Blueprint of Intervention and Civilizational Anxiety

The document espouses an aggressive form of foreign-policy meddling where the US clearly sets the goal of "promoting European greatness." Its rhetoric seems taken straight from addresses by the Hungarian Prime Minister during the much-discussed migration emergency of 2015-16: "We want Europe to remain European, to reclaim its cultural self-assurance." More ominously, the document claims that Europe's "economic decline is overshadowed by the genuine and more stark prospect of cultural extinction."

The whole section dedicated to Europe is steeped in generations of European far-right dogma and propaganda. The EU and its migration policies are held responsible for "transforming the continent and creating conflict, censorship of free speech and suppression of dissent, plummeting birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-confidence." Per the document, if "current trajectories 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 economic power and armed forces powerful enough to be reliable allies." Indeed, the Trump administration believes that "within a few decades at the latest, some NATO members will become majority non-European."

"American diplomacy should continue to stand up for genuine democracy, freedom of expression, and proud commemorations of European nations’ unique heritage and past."

Core Theories of the Right-Wing

These arguments carry strong echoes of two concepts regarded as foundational for contemporary right-wing circles. The first is Oswald Spengler's "The Decline of the West," whose thesis on the inevitable fall of civilizations was used by the German far right to attack the "perversion" and "weakness" of the democratic Weimar Republic. The second is "Le Grand Remplacement," published in 2011 by French novelist Renaud Camus, who transformed long-existing "indigenous" fears into a more explicit conspiratorial narrative, alleging European elites of using immigration to replace rebellious "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 authority, if not the obligation, to intervene in European affairs, the document suggests. And it is evident where it sees its allies: "The United States urges its political allies in Europe to promote this resurgence of spirit, and the growing influence of patriotic European parties in fact gives cause for great optimism."

The Goal: "Make Europe Great Again"

Put simply, the US contends that it is key to its national security to "Restore European strength," and that the European far right is the only movement that can accomplish this. Therefore, its "overarching strategy for Europe" prioritises "cultivating 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" – specifically "aligned countries that want to reclaim their past glory" – 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, more aligned with the US model – especially regarding right-wing speech – and not just on social media. Another is to normalize 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 treat Russia as an enemy either.

A Historical Precedent: The Monroe Doctrine

In a broader sense, 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 "Americas," which he proclaimed to be the US’s zone of influence. The Trump administration’s policy document promises to "implement a Trump addition" to the Monroe Doctrine, which involves the US "enlisting" countries worldwide that wish to help safeguard US national interests.

This is entirely new – recall JD Vance’s address at the 2025 Munich Security Conference, where the vice-president unleashed an assault on Europe’s democratic model. But perhaps now that it is laid out in an official document, European leaders will finally realize that the situation is grave. And if the document is too long or imprecise 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 destruction of liberal democracy in Europe. To put it bluntly, the US is not just an unwilling ally; it is a willing adversary. Now is time to act appropriately.