Trump pledges to reassert Monroe Doctrine to restore American power

President Donald Trump put forward a sweeping set of national security goals in which he vows to enforce the Monroe Doctrine while adding his own corollary aimed at expanding U.S. influence in the Western Hemisphere and countering adversaries’ growing footprint.

In the 33-page blueprint, the Trump administration asserts that a “reasonably stable” Western Hemisphere where governments work together to fight malign foreign influence is key to U.S. national security. To achieve this, the administration vows in the document to “assert and enforce a ‘Trump Corollary’ to the Monroe Doctrine.”

Former President James Monroe issued the doctrine in his seventh annual address to Congress on Dec. 2, 1823, warning European powers against interfering in the Western Hemisphere through political influence or colonization. The U.S. Office of the Historian, part of the State Department, notes that although European nations initially paid little attention to Monroe’s declaration, it eventually became “a longstanding tenet of U.S. foreign policy.”

“After years of neglect, the United States will reassert and enforce the Monroe Doctrine to restore American preeminence in the Western Hemisphere, and to protect our homeland and our access to key geographies throughout the region,” the document reads. “This ‘Trump Corollary’ to the Monroe Doctrine is a common-sense and potent restoration of American power and priorities, consistent with American security interests.”

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The document describes the administration’s goals in two words: “enlist and expand.” It aims to “enlist established friends” in the region to help control migration, stop drug trafficking and strengthen security. At the same time, the administration is looking to expand by “cultivating and strengthening” new relationships while establishing the U.S. as the “economic and security partner of choice” in the Western Hemisphere.

As part of the “enlist” element of the strategy, the administration looks to work with regional partners who can help ensure stability and neutralize common threats even beyond their own borders. The document emphasizes the need to look for countries that have common interests with the U.S. and to “not overlook governments with different outlooks.”

Additionally, the document asserts that the U.S. has to reconsider its military presence in the Western Hemisphere. This means readjusting American military presence to address threats in the Western Hemisphere in order to achieve the goals laid out in the blueprint. The readjustment would also impact the Coast Guard and Navy, as the document calls for “a more suitable” presence to allow U.S. personnel to control sea lanes, combat illegal migration and to reduce human and drug trafficking.

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“The goal is for our partner nations to build up their domestic economies, while an economically stronger and more sophisticated Western Hemisphere becomes an increasingly attractive market for American commerce and investment,” the document states.

The expansion element of the strategy would involve encouraging countries in the region to see the U.S. as its first-choice partner while also discouraging “collaboration” with other nations. As part of this, the document tasks the National Security Council with beginning a “robust interagency process” to identify strategic points and resources in the region with the aim of protecting them and establishing “joint development with regional partners.”

The blueprint laments the inroads made by “non-hemispheric competitors” in the region, saying that they put the U.S. at a current economic disadvantage while presenting possible threats to America’s future. It states that the terms of U.S. alliances and provisions for aid need to be “contingent on winding down adversarial outside influence.”

“The United States must be preeminent in the Western Hemisphere as a condition of our security and prosperity — a condition that allows us to assert ourselves confidently where and when we need to in the region,” the document reads.

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While some nations in the Western Hemisphere have well-established ties with non-regional actors, the document frames these relationships as ones of convenience and affordability. It asserts that the U.S. has already started rolling back the influence of non-regional actors by demonstrating the “hidden costs” of partnering with them, such as espionage and cybersecurity threats. The blueprint uses this as a basis for a larger strategy for the U.S. to make clear to the world that American goods and services are better investments in the long run.

The expansion will also take work at home, with the document insisting on more collaboration between the U.S. government and the private sector. It calls on all embassies to be aware of business opportunities in their countries.

“The choice all countries should face is whether they want to live in an American-led world of sovereign countries and free economies or in a parallel one in which they are influenced by countries on the other side of the world,” the document states.

The 33-page blueprint also outlines regional strategies for U.S. interactions with Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Additionally, it declares “the era of mass migration is over,” asserting that controlling the border is the “primary element” of U.S. national security.