Trump to spend $4 million bolstering right-wing media in Europe, sources say

U.S. President Donald Trump gestures as he delivers remarks on the "Trump Accounts" tax-advantaged investment program at Wheeler High School in Marietta, Georgia, on July 22. | REUTERS

REUTERS

Sep 1, 2026

WASHINGTON/BERLIN – U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration is planning to spend $4 million to bolster right-wing media in Europe, part of a package of at least $25 million for civil society groups working on conservative causes in the region, according to four people familiar with the funding.

The grants risk deepening tensions between the Trump administration and European governments, some of which have already accused Washington of interfering in their domestic politics.

The U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL) says the funding is meant to strengthen transatlantic ties and promote free speech. It comes as European countries prepare for elections over the next couple of years, and as the Trump administration openly backs Europe’s populist right-wing and far-right parties.

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