In November 2025, President Donald J. Trump unveiled his National Security Strategy for the United States. It is a concise document that describes and explains in plain language what the US strategy is, what has gone wrong and how to fix it. President Trump calls the document a follow-up to the Monroe Doctrine, which was launched as one of the cornerstones of American foreign policy by President James Monroe in 1823. In short, the doctrine is about protecting the US and America by countering European or other colonialist influence on the American side of the Atlantic, or mobilising American resources in foreign countries’ conflicts with the US. Trump’s reference to this doctrine should be seen as a signal to Europe and others that from now on, US foreign policy as well as security policy will reflect the slogan “America First!“.

A signal from the Trump administration that does not seem to be understood on the European side of the Atlantic is that Europe is mentioned no less than 49 times in this concise document. For the US, its people’s historic cultural connection to Europe is of great importance. There is a fear that Europe’s cultural roots are weakening. It is bluntly stated that the US is concerned about developments in Europe and wants to help redress the imbalances the Europeans themselves have inflicted on the relationship within NATO cooperation, politely reminding us that NATO is a mutual defence pact which also includes the defence of North America.

The document’s strong focus on Europe shows that the US side is fully aware that Europe has abandoned the course on which NATO was founded 75 years ago, and has entered waters that will require a radical shift in policy if cooperation with the US is to continue as it has been in the post-war period. Among other things, it states and emphasises that the US objective is to help Europe correct its current development. This is necessary because a strong Europe is a prerequisite for the US to help prevent any adversary from dominating Europe.

“Our goal should be to help Europe correct its current course. We need a strong Europe that can help us compete and co-operate with us to prevent any adversary from dominating Europe.

America understandably has an emotional attachment to the European continent – and of course to the UK and Ireland. The character of these countries is also strategically important because we rely on creative, capable, confident democratic allies to create stability and security. We want to work with like-minded countries seeking to restore their former greatness.”

Among the issues the US is now highlighting as problematic for security and co-operation is the rapidly growing population change it is observing in key European countries. And it is bluntly stating that certain NATO members will be populated by a non-European majority for the foreseeable future. In that case, it’s America’s cultural connection to Europe that is weakening:

“In the long term, it is more than likely that within a few decades at the latest certain NATO members will have a non-European majority. As such, it is an open question whether they will view their place in the world, or their alliance relationship with the US, in the same way as those who signed the NATO Charter.”

The relationship with Europe that the US wants to build on is formulated in seven points. However, these objectives presuppose that the European side recognises the evolving situation and expresses a credible willingness to take action that will bring about changes that will make Europe a credible and serious partner culturally, economically and militarily. Today, there are serious reasons to question a number of European countries’ recognition of the situation and their willingness to change course. This is why the US is now prioritising the following issues in its policy towards Europe:

• Restoring stability in Europe and strategic stability with Russia;
• Enable Europe to stand on its own feet and act as a group of allied sovereign nations, including by taking primary responsibility for its own defence, without being dominated by any hostile power;
• Encourage opposition to Europe’s current course of development among European nations;
• Open European markets to American goods and services and ensure fair treatment of American workers and businesses;
• Building the healthy nations of Central, Eastern and Southern Europe through trade relations, arms sales, political co-operation and cultural and academic exchanges;

Remove the perception of and impede the realisation of NATO as an ever-expanding alliance; and

• Encourage Europe to take action to combat trade overcapacity, technology theft, cyber espionage and other hostile economic practices.

There is nothing in these aspirations of the US leadership that should prevent any European country from joining them. But unfortunately, the European side today fears the challenges it will face on each of these points. The perception, which no-one in Europe is talking about, is that the developments President Trump and his staff are worried about have already passed a “point of no return“. The cost of turning around is perceived as prohibitive. A turnaround cannot be undertaken unseen. The incumbent regime has no one to blame but itself. Years of failed policies demand an explanation.

And perhaps worst of all: Admitting that it was President Donald Trump who exposed and made visible the disastrous misjudgements and devastating decisions made over decades by European leaders still sitting on their stools is too hard to admit. Not even the anti-government media will be able to admit that they have overlooked and perhaps contributed to the growing disaster that Europe and the EU have become.

Most likely we will see a political theatre that eerily mirrors the mad dictator who sat in his deep bunker making decisions that no one carried out and directing divisions and armies that did not exist. Europe’s leaders are surprisingly silent about the offer of meaningful, realistic and realistic cooperation for the benefit of Europe’s nations that the President of the United States has presented to Europe’s leaders in the new US security strategy.

President Trump calls for peace and responsible co-operation, but is met with hysterical yelling and screaming. Keeping the US out of Greenland and sending a few hundred more troops to “defend” an area the size of Western Europe reveals desperation, deceit and stupidity. Wouldn’t it have been better to accept and thank them for the offer and get our defences in order in both Europe and America? Don’t our leaders understand that they are making the defence of Europe, and thus NATO, irrelevant to the Americans? We really have to ask: What have we earned?