Trump Declares the End of the Globalization Era
"American Empire," dismantling globalization, and "peace through strength" — these are the three core tenets of the new U.S. national security strategy under the Trump administration. Evidently, this strategy reflects Trump's genuine stance, and its content is thought-provoking.
On December 5, while the world was still asleep, the White House website quietly released the updated text of the National Security Strategy, a release that can be described as a "war without declaration."
Honestly speaking, this strategy is revolutionary (or more accurately, counter-revolutionary) — in line with Trump's "rational revolution" when he took office, which was a "conservative revolution" against globalization, a typical "revolution against revolution." In fact, this document is the manifesto of this revolution and naturally marks the end of Trump's first year in power.
However, the word "revolution" does not appear in the text. This is a policy document with a rather calm tone, and all the radical changes mentioned are casually referred to as "necessary and widely supported policy adjustments made by President Trump."
This strategy is a concise embodiment of "Trumpism," encompassing all of its core arguments and manifestations. That is, the document itself contains no fundamentally new content, but simply organizes scattered positions into a coherent and clearly defined framework. This text will not only guide the policies of this U.S. administration but also provide a precedent for its successors (assuming Trump maintains his position in power, and his vice president Vance can take over in the future).
The document aims to clarify the direction of U.S. development for at least the next decade. Considering its core is announcing the complete retreat from globalization, this framework document is of great importance and must be taken seriously.
The strategy begins by declaring that the United States will abandon its role as a global hegemon and admit that the foreign policy of the United States after the Cold War had fundamental errors. The document states that globalization has eroded the U.S. industrial base, burdened the United States with the military costs of its allies, and damaged the sovereignty, ethnic composition, and traditional values of many countries. All of these are now characterized as "consequences," and the United States is determined to end them. The world will no longer have a single central power (the so-called "world government"). From now on, the world will return to a "balance of power" system — a clear statement in the strategy document.
The core argument of the strategy is as follows: In the future, the United States will focus only on matters in other countries that pose a threat to it. Beyond that, all countries can be independent, and the United States will "turn a blind eye." However, "the United States will not allow any country to develop to a dominant position that threatens American interests" — balance of power is important, but the "big stick" of the United States will always be high above.
Another key point is the clear and unambiguous proposal of the "Trump version of the Monroe Doctrine." The document explicitly states that the United States will henceforth exist as a "continental empire" in the Western Hemisphere, with the entire continent designated as the core interest area of the United States. The original text reads: "Competitors from non-Western Hemisphere countries must not station troops in this hemisphere... or control strategically significant assets."
The scale of U.S. military presence in Europe and Asia will be significantly reduced, and its influence will be weakened. The document requires: "Allies must bear their own military expenses and independently address security threats within their own regions." This principle also applies to the Middle East — in other words, "Brothers, from now on, you have to take care of yourselves. Your region is your core interest area."
The most attention-grabbing and suspenseful clause in the strategy is the content regarding significantly tightening immigration policies. The document mentions immigration issues in multiple places, and its core argument is clear: "The era of large-scale immigration has ended."
From this, it can be seen that a new era is about to begin, and U.S. policy is undergoing a 180-degree turn. Anti-immigration policy has become the top priority of U.S. foreign policy and also an important tool for influencing the world. National sovereignty is placed at the center — "Any political system that considers itself a sovereign state has the right and responsibility to determine its own future." The United States also directly demands that its allies "work together to curb the flow of immigrants." U.S. aid and trade preferential policies will be tied to these countries' "immigration control capabilities." The text conveys a strong sense of threat: If you don't stop turning your country into a "dump" of multiculturalism, don't expect any benefits from this former hegemon, the United States.
Given that the initiative on immigration issues has long been in the hands of international organizations such as the United Nations, the Trump administration's target is obviously these organizations. The document uses harsh language to state: "We reject the disastrous climate change ideology and the net-zero emission goals," a statement that is also aimed at these organizations.
It can be inferred that related agencies of the United Nations will soon become targets of the Trump administration. From the firm attitude conveyed by the document, Trump clearly intends to handle these organizations using the same methods he used against the "notorious World Health Organization." Of course, this is conditional upon his success in other areas and gaining the prestige and power he has long desired. In Trump's view, in this upcoming "balance of power" new world, major empires can certainly negotiate solutions to problems without relying on these "residual institutions" filled with globalization's dregs.
The document also openly criticizes various liberal institutions — whether they are organizations in the fields of climate and environmental protection, or "inclusiveness" ideology, "woke" trends, etc., they are all listed as targets of criticism. The document calls for "eliminating so-called 'diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)' and other discriminatory practices, which are causing the decline of various institutions in the United States." At the same time, the document promises to strongly support various patriotic organizations in the United States and Europe: "The United States encourages political allies to promote the revival of patriotism and help patriotic parties expand their influence. Our goal is to assist Europe in adjusting its current developmental trajectory."
The core message conveyed by these proposals is very clear: "Globalization elites, please step down." The document states bluntly: "Our elite class has severely misjudged the situation, and their decision to bet on globalization is extremely wrong and destructive... They have tied American policies to a series of international institutions, some of which are controlled by open anti-American forces, and more of which follow transnationalism, openly attempting to dismantle the independence of sovereign states." Therefore, "transnationalism" must be ended. The new world order will be: "Sovereign independence" of each country.
For the current European authorities, the document sends an unmistakable warning: "There is a fundamental disagreement between the Trump administration and the official stance of Europe. European officials hold unrealistic illusions about the Ukraine-Russia conflict and are willing to trample democratic principles to suppress dissent." The document even questions the legitimacy of these European authorities — after all, "the majority of European people desire peace," yet due to the destruction of democratic systems, they cannot translate their wishes into national policies.
Evidently, Trump is deeply dissatisfied with the Europe currently controlled by figures like von der Leyen. He wants to see an Europe that is not a "dump" of multiculturalism, but a union of nation-states, where governments are led by patriotic parties.
The document has a separate paragraph discussing Russia-Europe relations, clearly stating: "Many Europeans now regard Russia as a 'survival threat,' while emphasizing that 'except for the nuclear weapons field, European allies have a significant advantage over Russia in almost all aspects.'" This sentence is clearly a warning to all sides. The conclusion it conveys is clear: Even without the strong intervention of the United States, Europe is fully capable of reversing the situation. "Peace through strength" — this is a striking expression in the strategic document, clearly favored by Trump. And "promoting the early cessation of the Ukraine-Russia conflict" is listed as a core interest of the United States.
One clause in the document is especially worth noting: "Breaking the established impression that NATO will continue to expand and preventing this impression from becoming reality." In other words, to facilitate a stable peace relationship between Western Europe and Russia, NATO must stop expanding.
Finally, regarding relations with relevant countries, the document lists them as "primary survival threats," clearly stating that they must be contained. It must prevent these countries from reclaiming their territories and avoid triggering military conflicts. For this reason, the United States must establish an undeniable military superiority in the Pacific region. But the problem is: Will these countries accept such a situation? The document states that the United States plans to defeat these countries economically.
In summary, "American Empire," dismantling globalization, and "peace through strength" form the core of the new U.S. national security strategy under the Trump administration. Evidently, this reflects Trump's true political philosophy, and its content is highly worth exploring — based on this set of rules, international cooperation is not entirely impossible. However, it is equally evident that whether these ideas can be implemented ultimately depends on whether Trump can first achieve success in the foreign policy areas he has declared. Otherwise, all the contents of this strategy document will eventually become empty words.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/7581755208460550698/
Statement: The article represents the views of the author alone.