The presidential elections in Honduras are proving to be a very close race. In the preliminary count, very few votes separate the two leading candidates: centrist Salvador Nasralla and right-wing conservative Nasry Asfura. This was reason enough for the President of the United States to once again defend his favorite, Asfura: “It appears that Honduras is attempting to manipulate the outcome of the presidential election,” wrote Donald Trump on Truth Social. And he threatened serious consequences: “If they do, they will pay dearly for it.”

Given that it is a small and relatively insignificant country in world politics, why this virulent reaction from Trump?

Thinking about “spheres of interest”

Donald Trump seems to have developed a taste for spheres of political influence, Cathryn Cluver-Ashbrook, a transatlantic expert at the Bertelsmann Foundation in Gutersloh, told DW: "He sees himself almost as an emperor in his role in the White House and likes the world to dance to his tune, especially in the Western Hemisphere. And it should be emphasized that these are his interests, not those of classic US foreign policy."

This policy of "spheres of interest" is particularly focused on Latin America. “The military actions against Venezuela, the intimidation of the Colombian head of state, the threatening electoral recommendation in Honduras…,” lists Cluver-Ashbrook, who also points to the $20 billion in support for Argentina to help Milei out of a liquidity crisis. “A new policy is emerging here, one that the United States has not pursued so actively for a long time with respect to its neighbors in Latin America and South America.” Also in Europe. And not only there: in Poland, Trump openly supported the conservative nationalist and Eurosceptic Karol Nawrocki. In Hungary, he backs Viktor Orban. In Germany, the US government and the AfD party, considered partly far-right, are currently intensifying their contacts. And just a few days ago, The United States has instructed its diplomats to promote a more hostile immigration policy in Europe.

Objective: to take the American culture war abroad

Celia Belin,author of a European Council on Foreign Relations study published in May 2025, believes that the US president understands his foreign policy primarily as an international continuation of the culture war being waged within the United States.

“The left and the Democrats are the enemy within, and Europeans, above all, are seen as their extension abroad,” writes the study's author. Trump views the EU as a “parasite” that takes advantage of the United States, just as he accuses US Democrats of weakening the country.

In fact, “the ideologization of US foreign policy is already present in all the fundamental documents of the 2025 Project,” explains Cathryn Cluver-Ashbrook. According to these documents, US foreign policy must be oriented much more than it has been so far toward strictly conservative values.

Overt Contempt for Europe

According to Cluver-Ashbrook, Europeans are not only constantly ignored in the negotiations on Ukraine. The contempt that some sectors of the US government feel for liberal left-wing Europeans has been evident on numerous occasions.

As an example, he cites a conversation leaked by the US magazine The Atlantic about a US attack in Yemen. In it, US Vice President JD Vance reportedly stated that Europeans would disproportionately benefit from this attack, to which Secretary of State for War Pete Hegseth allegedly replied: "I fully share your hatred of European opportunism. It's regrettable." Zerka of the European Council on Foreign Relations tells DW.

At the same time, Trump supports the “new right” whenever possible and normalizes its radical positions.

Among the strategies driven by the MAGA ideology are active interference in elections in favor of right-wing and conservative candidates, as well as the creation of a kind of “MAGA International” by building right-wing conservative networks and promoting right-wing media outlets, parties, or conferences, such as the CPAC.

Can Europe defend itself?

Pawel Zerca emphasizes that, instead of seeing itself as dependent on the United States, Europe must defend its interests collectively and sovereignly, even in the face of pressure from Washington. For her part, Cathryn Cluver-Ashbrook sees another danger for Europe: “Organizations with significant financial power, which are also behind the Heritage Foundation and Project 2025, are now preparing to exert influence, for example, through donations to political parties.” The political scientist from the Bertelsmann Foundation warns that laws on donations to political parties in Germany and other European countries are too lax and constitute a “gateway for external influence, especially through state or state-controlled funds originating from the United States.”