US to fund Trump-aligned Europeans building ‘civilisational bonds’

{"text":[[{"start":7.75,"text":"The US state department is offering grants of up to $3mn for Maga-aligned European groups that combat “censorship” and develop “civilisational bonds” between the US and the continent. "}],[{"start":19.2,"text":"The department posted applications online on Monday for $1mn-$3mn grants for European civil society and non-governmental organisations as well as educational institutions and for-profit groups seeking to “address national sovereignty, migration, censorship, and lawfare challenges in line with shared political philosophy, law, and our common Western civilizational heritage”."}],[{"start":44.05,"text":"During President Donald Trump’s second term US officials have accused the UK and the EU of stifling freedom of speech as they seek to regulate hate speech online and of attempting to neuter expressions of national sovereignty."}],[{"start":57.349999999999994,"text":"The grants represent one of the Trump administration’s first steps to turn its escalating rhetoric against Europe into policy after struggling to produce concrete results. The FT reported earlier this year that the state department sought to repurpose an existing funding stream for foreign aid to help Maga-aligned think-tanks and charities across Europe. "}],[{"start":77.89999999999999,"text":"Almost $5mn is available to support the project, according to a state department notice, with the funds expected to be disbursed between two or three recipients."}],[{"start":88.24999999999999,"text":"“Supra-national institutions and governments are using state power to undermine fundamental principles of democratic self-government through overbroad and vague hate-speech laws and online content regulations that police and punish speech while suppressing political participation,” the notice stated. "}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":108.1,"text":"The state department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the department previously told the FT that it “does not and will not” fund political parties in Europe or elsewhere. "}],[{"start":118.85,"text":"During Trump’s second term, US officials have sought to bolster populist and nationalist politicians in Europe, including Hungary’s Viktor Orbán and members of Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany. "}],[{"start":131.35,"text":"The administation’s national security strategy, released last year, called for “cultivating resistance” to Europe’s current trajectory. The document warned that Europe faced the risk of “civilisational erasure” due to mass migration, falling birth rates and the loss of sovereignty to Brussels. "}],[{"start":148.35,"text":"US support for rightwing parties has had mixed results. Nationalist leaders in Europe have reconsidered their relationship with the Trump administration in the wake of the Iran war, which has driven up global energy prices. "}],[{"start":160.1,"text":"Vice-president JD Vance, the administration’s sharpest Europe critic, flew to Hungary in April to rally for Orbán, a longstanding Trump ally, days ahead of closely watched elections. Despite Trump and Vance’s endorsement, Orbán was voted out of office in a landslide. "}],[{"start":184.7,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1784086043_1393.mp3"}