TheDonroe Doctrine, alternatively styled as theTrump Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, is an interpretation of principles of PresidentDonald Trump's foreign policy in theAmericas. An adaption of the historicalMonroe Doctrine, it describes a perceived desire by thesecond Trump administration to assertAmerican predominance in theWestern Hemisphere.
Trump's efforts torename theGulf of Mexico, acquireCanada, thePanama Canal andGreenland as well as pursuingmilitary action againstVenezuela have all been cited as part of a Trump corollary to the Monroe Doctrine. Additionally, Trump's "America First" agenda and skepticism ofmultilateralism has contributed to a view that the U.S. is focusing on its own hemisphere at the expense of traditional alliances, such asNATO.
Following the2026 U.S. strikes in Venezuela and capture of its presidentNicolás Maduro, Trump himself referred to "the Donroe Doctrine", stating that "American dominance in theWestern Hemisphere will never be questioned again".
While supporters see the doctrine as restoring American primacy and combating the influence ofChina andRussia in the region, critics have suggested that it could set a precedent forilliberal regimes to violate therule of law and pursueterritorial expansion.
The original 19th-century Monroe Doctrine was outlined inJames Monroe'sDecember 1823 State of the Union Address.[1] It opposed European intervention in theAmericas and warned foreign powers that the United States would not toleratecolonization of its neighbors.[2]Theodore Roosevelt's military expeditions in Latin America (Santo Domingo andNicaragua) arguably extended the principle of the Monroe Doctrine to justifyingintervention to prevent foreign powers from gaining influence in a U.S.zone of influence.[3]
Thefirst Trump administration challenged thehuman rights record of theCuban,Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan regimes.[4] In 2017, Trump stated that he was considering using military force in Venezuela during aperiod of civil unrest.[5] In 2018, Trump signed the Nicaragua Human Rights and Anticorruption Act of 2018, which imposed restrictions and sanctions on those responsible for civil rights infringements.[6] Also in 2018, Trump stated that the U.S. was committed to "maintaining our independence from the encroachment ofexpansionist foreign powers" in the Americas.[7]
In August 2019, Trump expressed interest in buyingGreenland fromDenmark. In reaction, Greenland's foreign ministry declared that the territory was not for sale.[8] Citing Denmark's reluctance to discuss any purchase, Trump canceled a scheduled September trip to Copenhagen days later .[9] The Trump administration declaredrare-earth minerals to be vital to national security. With Chinese companies investing in mining of Greenland's abundant resources, the U.S. signed in 2019 an agreement to fund an aerial survey of mineral resources inGarðar.[10]
In July 2020, Trump signed theUnited States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), replacingNAFTA. The second Trump administration was accused of breaching the USMCA when the2025 United States trade war with Canada and Mexico began in February 2025, with 25% import tariffs introduced by the U.S. to counter the "extraordinary threat posed byillegal aliens anddrugs".[11]
On January 8, 2025, the tabloidNew York Post published a front cover with the title "The Donroe Doctrine: Trump's vision for hemisphere".[12][13] It has been suggested that this was the origin of theportmanteau of Donald Trump and the Monroe Doctrine.[14][15] The paper's front page showed an image of Trump pointing to a map in which Canada is crossed out and renamed "51st state", Greenland is labeled "our land", and the Panama Canal is labeled "Pana-MAGA".[16] The term did not immediately gain traction following publication of thePost cover but began to circulate more widely in the fall of 2025 with headlines in theFinancial Times,The New York Times and other outlets. It was also cited on theFox News andFox & Friends several times. The doctrine has alternatively styled as theTrump Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine.[17] Trump would go on to use the term himself following theraid in Venezuela in January 2026, saying "they now call it the 'Donroe Doctrine'", in what was viewed as an admission that he himself did not invent the term.[15]
Trump has a complex relationship with theNew York Post. His love has been described as "well known",[16] and he has previously acted as asource for stories, a consumer of the publication,[15] and appeared in thePage Six gossip column under his own name and as fakepublic relations agentJohn Baron.[16] On January 7, 2026, the cover was shared by theHouse Foreign Affairs Committee social media account onX with a caption reading, "Our country was built by warriors and explorers. We tamed theWest, won two World Wars, and were the first toplant our flag on the moon. President Trump has the biggest dreams for America and it's un-American to be afraid of big dreams" before later deleting the post.[18] A digitally modified version of the same cover was later re-uploaded. The cover said "The Trump Doctrine" and the post explained "President Trump'sAmerica First vision is worthy of being called by its own doctrine."[18][19]
Since hissecond inauguration, Trump's efforts to rename theGulf of Mexico, acquireCanada, thePanama Canal andGreenland and pursue military action againstVenezuela have all been cited as part of the doctrine which seeks to establishU.S. dominance in theAmericas, while countering the influence of othermajor powers.[20][21] The administration'snational security strategy, released in November 2025, explicitly references theMonroe Doctrine and asserts a "Trump Corollary" to the doctrine.[22][23] It stated the intention of theTrump administration to "reassert and enforce the Monroe doctrine to restore American pre-eminence in theWestern Hemisphere".[24]
Trump's decision to usenaval forces in the Caribbean targeting alleged drug boats has also been labeled as an example of both the Donroe Doctrine and a revival ofgunboat diplomacy which avoids large-scale action.[7] It was described byJohn D. Feeley, a formerU.S. ambassador to Panama, as a "veryparochial New York view" offoreign relations and likened it tomob bosses battling for control of turf in New York.[25] While the original Monroe Doctrine sought to excludeEuropean interference in the Americas, the Donroe Doctrine has been described as a similar attempt to excludeChinese andRussian influence in the region.[21]
The Donroe Doctrine has been used to described different instances in thesecond presidency of Donald Trump.
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On January 3, 2026,U.S. military andfederal law enforcement apprehended the President of Venezuela,Nicolás Maduro, in a mission codenamedOperation Absolute Resolve. Following Maduro's arrest, the officialState Department X account wrote, "This is OUR Hemisphere and President Trump will not allow our security to be threatened".[26] In a press conference later that day, Trump referred to "the Donroe document", stating that "American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again".[27]
Trump has repeatedly praisedArgentine presidentJavier Milei, who was the first foreign leader to meet with Trump after he won the2024 U.S. presidential election.[28] Milei came out in support of the U.S. capture of Nicolás Maduro in January 2026.[29] The Trump administration's support for the Argentinian government, including financial assistance, particularly during the2025 Argentine legislative election, has been cited as an example of the Donroe Doctrine in effect.[30][31]
In October 2025, Trump accusedColombian PresidentGustavo Petro of being an "illegal drug dealer" and simultaneously cut off diplomatic aid to Colombia. Since that time, Trump has directed theUnited States military to strike alleged drug trafficking vessels along Colombia's coasts, while at the same time striking similar vessels along Venezuela's coast after claiming Maduro was adrug trafficker.[32][33] FollowingOperation Absolute Resolve, Trump appeared to threaten Petro. When asked if he was considering a military strike in Colombia, he said, "It sounds good to me", and again described Petro as a drug trafficker.[34][35]
On his first day in office following hiselection in 2024, Trump issuedan executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.[36] He has also offered to send troops to Mexico to combatdrug trafficking, although PresidentClaudia Sheinbaum declined.[37] Trump's calls for Canada to become the51st state, as well as theimposition of tariffs, have been viewed as examples of the doctrine in force.[38][39] Thebuildup of U.S. military assets inPuerto Rico has been attributed to the doctrine's support for power projection.[40]
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The Trump administration has made efforts to acquireGreenland as a strategically important area as far back as 2017.[43]JD Vance supported the idea of American ownership, traveling to Greenland in March 2025.[44] Following theJanuary 2026 raids in Venezuela, questions arose as to whether increasing focus on Greenland was also within the purview of Trump's goal, even by force. The renewed focus on Greenland followed a provocative tweet byKatie Miller, wife of senior Trump adviserStephen Miller, showing Greenland draped in theU.S. flag with the word "soon". This prompted journalists to question Trump directly, rapidly shifting the news agenda. Stephen Miller has openly framed Trump's foreign policy as one based on raw power, reinforcing concerns that the administration views an Americansuperpower status as justification for coercive action.[45] White House press secretaryKaroline Leavitt said of acquiring Greenland, "utilizing theU.S. Military is always an option."[46][47]
At the56th World Economic Forum, Trump said Greenland "is actually part of North America on the northern frontier of the Western Hemisphere, that's our territory (...) And in fact, it's been our policy for hundreds of years to prevent outside threats from entering our hemisphere, and we've done it very successfully.".[48]
While supporters see the doctrine as restoring American primacy and combating the influence ofChina andRussia in the region, critics have suggested that it could set a precedent forilliberal regimes to violate therule of law and pursueterritorial expansion.[49]
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