Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán welcomed the United States’ new National Security Strategy on Wednesday, saying it confirms his long-held view that Europe is in economic and civilisational decline and that Brussels has lost its way.
In a post on X, Orbán called the strategy “the most important and most interesting document of recent years,” arguing that Washington’s assessment mirrors the concerns Central European governments have raised for more than a decade.
“They see that Europe has hit the wall of a long economic dead end,” Orbán wrote, warning that a weak Europe “cannot defend itself and cannot be relied upon in international affairs.” He also said the document recognises a broader “civilisational crisis,” claiming that democracy, the free market, and Europe’s core values are now “in danger.”
For the first time in years, Washington adopts a critical tone towards Brussels, similar to the one the European Commission has employed against dissenting governments such as Hungary’s. For Orbán, this convergence is not anecdotal. In his view, the United States explicitly recognises that Europe has entered a cycle of structural stagnation, loss of sovereignty, and cultural crisis that compromises both its internal cohesion and its strategic usefulness for the Western world.
The U.S. document openly states that Europe may not be a “reliable” ally in the medium term, a major departure from the long-standing U.S. habit of treating the European Commission with automatic respect and steering clear of its internal political disputes.
The strategy singles out the Commission and other transnational bodies as actors that “undermine political liberty and sovereignty” and questions several flagship Brussels policies, including border management, rules governing online speech, and even interventions in elections.
Washington’s analysis suggests that the EU has evolved from an economic project into an expansive and increasingly ideological political entity whose priorities do not always align with broader Western security interests. Orbán views this as a clear endorsement of the sovereigntist positions Hungary has defended for years, especially on migration, the defence of traditional values, and national autonomy.
Migration plays a central role in the American analysis. The strategy warns that demographic imbalances in Europe—combined with falling birthrates—are reshaping Europe’s social fabric and weakening political stability. This assessment broadly agrees with observations by Rod Dreher, who warns that the inability to integrate large newly arrived communities is fueling tensions that can lead to internal conflict.
It also agrees with analysts such as MCC Brussels Head of Policy Jacob Reynolds, who says Brussels is now more focused on steering public debate than on keeping digital markets fair — a view strengthened in Washington by the recent EU fine against X, seen as an attempt to tighten control over speech. The U.S. strategy answers this by putting freedom of expression at the centre of its approach, even when that means pushing back against allies.
Another significant element is the call to ease the portrayal of Russia as an existential threat and to rebuild “conditions of strategic stability. Orbán highlighted this in his commentary, accusing European liberals of having “burned the network of relations that once existed with Russia.” He said U.S. policymakers now acknowledge the need to restore those channels at a strategic level—an approach Hungary has long promoted inside the EU.
The reaction in Brussels has been uneasy. Several EU officials privately complain that Washington is adopting rhetoric associated with sovereigntist parties, while diplomats warn the strategy could influence internal European debates at a moment of political strain. But parties sceptical of deeper integration say the American analysis validates their critique of the EU’s current trajectory.
“In summary: America has a precise understanding of Europe’s decline,” Orbán concluded. “They see the civilisational-scale decline that we in Hungary have been fighting against for fifteen years. At last, we are not fighting against it alone.”
