🔗 Share this article EU Might Retaliate to ‘Unjustified’ US Travel Restrictions, Spokesperson Says The EU might “respond swiftly and decisively” in response to what it calls “unwarranted” travel bans imposed by the United States on five European individuals working on fighting online hate and disinformation, a European Commission spokesperson stated. European Leaders Decry US Action as ‘Intimidation’ European leaders such as Emmanuel Macron charged Washington of “coercion and intimidation”, following the visa restrictions targeted figures that were at the heart of efforts to enact laws regulating US-based technology firms. “For too long, ideologues in Europe have led coordinated campaigns to coerce US companies to suppress American viewpoints they oppose,” stated the US secretary of state online. “The current administration will not stand for such actions of extraterritorial censorship.” Widespread Condemnation Across Europe Germany, Spain, the UK and a chorus of EU officials joined the French president in condemning the move. The restrictions were imposed this week on a former EU commissioner involved in crafting the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), along with four activists fighting false information, from two in Germany and two in the UK. A Deepening Dispute Regarding Governance The DSA is seen by US officials as a type of speech restriction, while European leaders contend the rules are necessary to combat hate speech and disinformation. This row threatens to become part of a much broader ongoing cultural and political conflict between the current US administration and Europe. Additional Updates Reported Today In related legal developments: A US district judge has halted attempts to cut federal homeland security funding to states that do not comply with certain immigration enforcement policies. The judge stated the case was “a further instance” of linking government assistance to adherence to directives. Approval was given for the dispatch of hundreds of national guard troops to a major US city ahead of the holiday period, coinciding with an ongoing immigration enforcement operation. A Pacific Island nation will consent to accept a limited number of migrants from the US in return for additional aid, following concluding a formal agreement with Washington. Furthermore, a congressional representative has filed a lawsuit seeking the stripping of a political figure’s name from a prominent cultural institution in the capital. Experts point out that recent statements regarding foreign petroleum resources align with a wider ideology in certain circles of “economic expansionism”, leading to parallels with past foreign policy strategies.
The EU might “respond swiftly and decisively” in response to what it calls “unwarranted” travel bans imposed by the United States on five European individuals working on fighting online hate and disinformation, a European Commission spokesperson stated. European Leaders Decry US Action as ‘Intimidation’ European leaders such as Emmanuel Macron charged Washington of “coercion and intimidation”, following the visa restrictions targeted figures that were at the heart of efforts to enact laws regulating US-based technology firms. “For too long, ideologues in Europe have led coordinated campaigns to coerce US companies to suppress American viewpoints they oppose,” stated the US secretary of state online. “The current administration will not stand for such actions of extraterritorial censorship.” Widespread Condemnation Across Europe Germany, Spain, the UK and a chorus of EU officials joined the French president in condemning the move. The restrictions were imposed this week on a former EU commissioner involved in crafting the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), along with four activists fighting false information, from two in Germany and two in the UK. A Deepening Dispute Regarding Governance The DSA is seen by US officials as a type of speech restriction, while European leaders contend the rules are necessary to combat hate speech and disinformation. This row threatens to become part of a much broader ongoing cultural and political conflict between the current US administration and Europe. Additional Updates Reported Today In related legal developments: A US district judge has halted attempts to cut federal homeland security funding to states that do not comply with certain immigration enforcement policies. The judge stated the case was “a further instance” of linking government assistance to adherence to directives. Approval was given for the dispatch of hundreds of national guard troops to a major US city ahead of the holiday period, coinciding with an ongoing immigration enforcement operation. A Pacific Island nation will consent to accept a limited number of migrants from the US in return for additional aid, following concluding a formal agreement with Washington. Furthermore, a congressional representative has filed a lawsuit seeking the stripping of a political figure’s name from a prominent cultural institution in the capital. Experts point out that recent statements regarding foreign petroleum resources align with a wider ideology in certain circles of “economic expansionism”, leading to parallels with past foreign policy strategies.