European Union Could Retaliate to ‘Unjustified’ US Visa Bans, Official Says

The European Union might “act quickly and firmly” against what it calls “unjustified” visa bans issued by the US on five Europeans involved in combating digital hatred and misinformation, an EU official has said.

EU Officials Condemn US Action as ‘Intimidation’

Officials from Europe such as Emmanuel Macron charged the US administration of “coercion and intimidation”, after the visa restrictions were placed on figures who have been central to efforts to introduce legislation regulating American tech companies.

“For too long, European activists have spearheaded coordinated campaigns to coerce American platforms to suppress American viewpoints they oppose,” wrote the US secretary of state online. “This government will no longer tolerate such actions of extraterritorial censorship.”

Broad Criticism Across Europe

Germany, Spain, the UK and a chorus of EU officials supported the French president in condemning the move.

The bans were enacted this week against a former EU commissioner who helped draft the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), as well as several anti-disinformation campaigners, from Germany and the United Kingdom.

A Deepening Dispute Regarding Governance

The DSA is seen by US officials as a form of censorship, whereas EU authorities contend the rules are necessary to combat hate speech and disinformation.

This row threatens to become a facet of a far wider existing cultural and political conflict between the current US administration and European institutions.

Additional Updates Reported Today

In other judicial developments:

• A US district judge has halted efforts to reduce security grants to local governments that do not comply with specific federal immigration rules. The official stated the case was “another example” of tying federal aid to adherence to directives.
• Authorization was issued for the dispatch of hundreds of national guard troops to a major US city prior to the new year, alongside an ongoing immigration enforcement operation.
• A Pacific Island nation has agreed to take in dozens of migrants from the US in return for additional aid, after concluding a memorandum of understanding with Washington.

Furthermore, a Democratic lawmaker has filed a lawsuit to demand the removal of a political figure’s name from a well-known performing arts center in Washington DC.

Experts point out that comments regarding foreign petroleum resources align with a wider ideology in some quarters of “resource imperialism”, leading to parallels with past foreign policy actions.