The Trump administration's new National Security Strategy is exacerbating tensions that have lately been plaguing relations with its European allies.

The controversial document sees the European Union at fault for protracted Ukraine peace negotiations with Russia and — in an apparent nod to the bloc's various far-right parties — criticizes what it calls the suppression of democratic processes and liberties within its member states.

Brando Benifei, a member of the European Parliament for the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats and chair of the EU's Delegation for Relations with the US, told DW News that the US, not the EU, is "going in a bad direction," further complicating forthcoming trade talks with this "harsh and extreme" rhetoric.

Benifei points to tech billionaire Elon Musk's support for Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and the White House's reception of Poland's President Karol Nawrocki during his electoral campaign as clear examples of US interference in democratic governance and infringements on European sovereignty.