What fundamental changes does the new US security doctrine bring compared to its previous strategic orientation?
Manfred Berg: I do not see a fundamental change in this sense, but rather radicalization. We have been hearing similar statements from the Trump administration for a long time - it is enough to recall only the Munich Security Conference and the speech of US Vice President J.D. Vance. In this sense, the new strategy is a summary that shows us quite clearly in which direction American foreign policy will move in the coming years - especially with regard to Europe.
What characterizes this radicalization?
Manfred Berg: In fact, it is a declaration of war on Europe. The European Union (EU) is seen as an adversary. The Trump administration would like to see it go, and for the US to maintain bilateral relations with European countries, or at least downgrade the EU's status to something like a free trade zone. That, at least, can be read between the lines.
"Europe is seen as a declining culture"
What I find particularly radical is that this document is distinguished by an outright nationalist tone. With regard to the US, it is said that America needs strong families with healthy children. This is reminiscent of the language of nationalist movements and regimes. With regard to Europe, the demographic transformation, which is also observed in the US, by the way, is considered a problem. Europe is seen as a declining culture that is betraying its civilizational values. Migration and the demographic transformation of European nations are seen as a major problem.
The Trump administration does not hide that it is seeking an alliance with right-wing populist forces, which it considers the guardians of Western civilization. This is actually nothing new, but in this radicalized version it is in many ways shocking.
Is this an attempt to divide the European Union or to deepen the division that is already partially emerging?
Manfred Berg: Trump has never hidden that he views the European Union as an adversary and that he would like to see the forces in Europe that are opposed to the European Union strengthened. In addition to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán or "PiS" in Poland, these are also the right-wing populist movements in Germany and other countries, including France. Of course, this is an attempt to divide the European Union and Europeans.
You have been following the polarization in the US for a long time. The document itself refers to the isolationist Monroe Doctrine of the 19th century. Does he really fit into this tradition?
Manfred Berg: The original Monroe Doctrine was "America for the Americans". In 1823, the United States opposed European attempts to re-establish colonies in America. The reason for this was the struggle for freedom in Latin America against Spain. However, behind the Monroe Doctrine was a claim to hegemony. In the early 20th century, President Theodore Roosevelt sharpened it, declaring that the United States should play the role of policeman in Latin America.
"The United States wants to regain its old role as a hegemon"
Trump openly continues this line. The United States wants to regain its old role as a hegemon, which gave it control over strategically important raw materials and territories. This is probably referring to the Panama Canal, which the US returned to Panama at the end of the 20th century, which American nationalists cannot stomach. In fact, this is not so much a return to the early 19th century as to the early 20th century, when the US intervened at its own discretion in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Where in this situation in the US are the classic transatlanticists who support a transatlantic-oriented foreign policy?
Manfred Berg: We really ask ourselves this question. I think there are many people in the military who know how important NATO and the Transatlantic Alliance are to American global power. At the moment, these people are not given much attention. The same applies to the transatlanticists in the Republican Party and even in the Trump administration. Secretary of State Marco Rubio plays almost no role. He was also not involved in the so-called peace plan that Trump presented some time ago for Ukraine.
"Trump wants to radically redefine the world order"
Of course, there is a lot of criticism among the opposition and in intellectual circles. Some observers have recently said that with this strategy the US is giving up its role as a world power. I rather think that Trump wants to radically redefine the world order and the US role in it - to break away from globalism, from the export of democracy, from what in Germany is called a values-based foreign policy. Russia is no longer seen as an adversary, but on the contrary. The US sees itself as a mediator for achieving "strategic stability" between Europe and Russia, as this document says. The transatlantic alliance as we have known it since the beginning of the Cold War no longer exists, at least not under the conditions that the Trump administration is currently defining.
What can the EU do in this situation?
Manfred Berg: We have been talking for a long time about the EU having to show unity and be consistent, that it has to use its economic potential and develop towards a military alliance. In any case, we cannot expect that we will return to the transatlantic relations of before Trump in the foreseeable future. This is unrealistic - even if he is no longer on the political scene in a few years.
But these appeals to Europeans often fail because of national interests. And the Trump administration is speculating on this. We are 27 countries in the European Union, which always think of their national interests first. The EU needs strong leadership, but Germany and France, which should be the leading powers in the EU, are increasingly unstable - politically and economically weakened.
*German historian Manfred Berg is a professor of American history at Heidelberg University
Author: Eckart Aretz (ARD)