Berlin, Germany (Weltexpress). Under the slogans “America First” and “Peace through Strength,” US President Donald Trump has now presented a strategy that marks a clear break with the foreign and security policy line of recent decades and is likely to cause considerable upheaval, especially in Europe.
On December 5, 2025, the White House published the new “National Security Strategy of the United States.” The document, which is only 33 pages long, can be viewed at this address .
In terms of content, the new strategy is uncompromisingly aimed at securing the country’s own borders, reviving the American economy, and pursuing a highly selective, graduated approach to international intervention, always under the motto “America First.”
The central priorities
At the heart of the new strategy is the protection of the homeland. Mass immigration is no longer treated as a humanitarian or economic issue, but is declared an existential threat to social cohesion, the labor market, and internal security. The authors openly state that “the era of mass migration must end.” Lethal force is to be used against Mexican cartels and smuggling gangs if necessary; the Coast Guard and Navy are to be massively increased in the Caribbean region.
In the Western Hemisphere system, a so-called “Trump Corollary” is proclaimed as the new Monroe Doctrine 2.0: The US is once again claiming unrestricted hegemony in Central and South America. China and other opponents are to be pushed out of the region, and migration and drug flows are to be stopped by any means necessary – including military force if necessary.
Europe and NATO are significantly downgraded. The strategy warns of a “civilizational decline” in Europe due to demographic change and migration. The document speaks of a looming “predominantly non-European” composition of several NATO member states in the foreseeable future. Washington therefore announced that it would “cultivate resistance to European decline.” In plain language, this means supporting internal EU political resistance (such as the AfD in Germany) against the neoliberal globalist elite currently ruling Europe.
Radical changes are also planned for NATO. Instead of further expansion, NATO is to be reduced to its core tasks. At the same time, European allies are being called upon to take greater responsibility for their own defense and to spend at least five percent of their GDP on this purpose—a share well above the previous two percent target.
The strategy strikes a surprisingly conciliatory tone toward China – at least economically. Instead of comprehensive decoupling, the aim is to strive for “mutually beneficial” trade with strict reciprocity. At the same time, the open-door policy of recent decades is sharply criticized for having made China a world power in the first place.
Militarily, however, China remains the central challenge for Washington: a possible conflict over Taiwan is therefore to be prevented by clear military superiority (“military overmatch”). The strategy for how this “US overmatch” could be implemented logistically and militarily on China’s doorstep was most likely discovered after enjoying a mind-expanding hemp cigar and a subsequent look into the Pentagon’s secret crystal ball.
In the Ukraine war, the document calls for a “rapid end to hostilities” through negotiations. The Biden administration’s indefinite support for Kyiv is portrayed as a mistake. Instead, strategic stability with Russia should be restored to prevent Europeans from escalating even further in Ukraine.
The Middle East and Africa hardly play a role anymore. The former “missions to build democratic nations” were nonsensical and are declared to be finally over. Allies such as Saudi Arabia and the Emirates should no longer be “lectured” about human rights and similar nonsense. Washington wants to withdraw largely from Africa in order to obtain its necessary raw materials from more important and reliable regions.
Contrast to the Biden administration
Here is a brief comparison of some key points between Joe Biden’s 2022 National Security Strategy and Trump’s new, current 2025 version:
The contrast with the Biden administration of 2022 could hardly be greater:
- In 2022, the focus was on the global leadership role of the US, strengthening multilateral alliances, and combating climate change, pandemics, and so-called “authoritarianism” around the world. In 2025, this very “global order” is rejected as a naïve mistake of past decades that has primarily strengthened China and weakened the American middle class.
- In 2022, migration was still seen as a humanitarian challenge to be tackled by addressing its root causes through development aid – in 2025, it is considered a direct threat to national identity and security.
- In 2022, Europe and NATO were to be strengthened and expanded in order to contain Russia. In 2025, warnings are issued about Europe’s “self-inflicted decline” and a massive reduction in American involvement is announced.
- In 2022, China was seen as a “pacing challenge” against which global alliances such as AKUS should be forged. China’s “pacing challenge” meant a “long-term rivalry” in which one nation tries to “keep pace” and attempts to outmaneuver the other across various domains, but not through immediate conflicts. In 2025, Trump favors pragmatic trade with China as long as reciprocity is guaranteed.
- The war in Ukraine was allegedly fought in 2022 as a battle for democracy to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia, the “acute aggressor.” In 2025, the war is to be ended as quickly as possible through a deal.
Overall, the 2022 strategy document has shrunk from 48 pages under Biden to just 33 pages under Trump. In terms of content, it has shifted from irrational, “values-based” globalism to sober realism. The message is unmistakable: the days when US vassals could rely on the US as the world’s policeman are over.
Conclusion
The National Security Strategy of November 2025 is more than just a strategy paper – it is the programmatic basis for Trump’s second term in office. It breaks radically with the post-war order that has been shaped by the US since 1945 and instead focuses on a return to the US’s own hemisphere, tough border security, and concentrated deterrence against China. Europe, the Middle East, and large parts of Africa are deliberately classified as secondary theaters in which risks are consciously accepted in order to free up resources for truly vital US interests.
However, this strategy of “controlled withdrawal” and adaptation to global realities, manifested in the radical shift in the balance of power to the detriment of the West and the US, will not prevent the relative decline of the US. Instead, it could enable the US to integrate peacefully into the new multipolar order.
In any case, it is clear that this document marks the beginning of a new chapter in American foreign policy, which is likely to lead to considerable upheaval, especially in Europe, where, unlike Washington, the signs of the times have not yet been recognized.
