EU Could Respond to ‘Unjustified’ US Travel Restrictions, Official Says
The EU could “respond swiftly and decisively” in response to what it calls “unwarranted” travel bans imposed by the United States on five Europeans involved in fighting online hate and disinformation, an EU official has said.
European Leaders Condemn US Action as ‘Intimidation’
European leaders including the French president accused the US administration of “bullying and threats”, after the visa restrictions targeted figures who have been central to efforts to introduce legislation governing US-based technology firms.
“For too long, European activists have spearheaded organised efforts to pressure American platforms to suppress American viewpoints they oppose,” wrote a senior US official in a social media post. “This government will no longer tolerate such actions of extraterritorial censorship.”
Broad Criticism From EU Nations
Germany, Spain, the UK and a chorus of EU officials supported France in condemning the move.
The restrictions were enacted on Tuesday on a former EU commissioner who helped draft the bloc’s Digital Services Act (DSA), as well as four anti-disinformation campaigners, from two in Germany and two in the UK.
A Deepening Dispute Over Regulation
This European legislation is seen by US officials as a type of speech restriction, while EU authorities contend the regulations are necessary to control inflammatory language and falsehoods.
This row threatens to become a facet of a far wider existing cultural and political conflict involving the current US administration and European institutions.
Other Developments Reported Today
In other legal developments:
- A US district judge has blocked attempts to reduce federal homeland security funding to states which resist certain immigration enforcement policies. The official stated the case was “a further instance” of tying federal aid to policy compliance.
- Approval was given for the dispatch of hundreds of national guard troops to New Orleans ahead of the holiday period, alongside an ongoing immigration enforcement operation.
- A Pacific Island nation has agreed to take in a limited number of individuals from the US in exchange for increased assistance, following concluding a formal agreement with Washington.
Furthermore, a Democratic lawmaker has initiated legal action to demand the stripping of the current president’s name from a prominent performing arts center in the capital.
Experts point out that comments regarding Venezuelan oil align with a wider ideology in some quarters of “resource imperialism”, drawing comparisons with historical international strategies.
