EU Could Retaliate to ‘Unwarranted’ US Visa Bans, Official Says

The EU could “respond swiftly and decisively” against what it deems “unwarranted” visa bans issued by the US against five Europeans working on combating digital hatred and disinformation, an EU official has said.

European Leaders Condemn US Move as ‘Intimidation’

European leaders including Emmanuel Macron charged the US administration of “bullying and threats”, following the travel bans targeted individuals who have been at the heart of campaigns to introduce legislation regulating American tech companies.

“For far too long, European activists have led organised efforts to coerce US companies to punish US perspectives they oppose,” wrote a senior US official in a social media post. “The current administration will no longer tolerate such actions of extraterritorial censorship.”

Broad Criticism Across Europe

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

The bans were enacted on Tuesday against an ex-European commissioner who helped draft the EU’s digital governance law, as well as several anti-disinformation campaigners, including two in Germany and two in the UK.

A Deepening Dispute Over Regulation

The DSA is viewed by US officials as a form of censorship, while European leaders argue the regulations are necessary to control inflammatory language and falsehoods.

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

Additional Updates Reported Today

In other legal developments:

• A federal judge has blocked attempts to reduce federal homeland security funding to states which resist specific federal immigration rules. The judge ruled the case was “another example” of tying government assistance to adherence to directives.
• Authorization was issued for the deployment of 350 national guard members to New Orleans ahead of the holiday period, alongside an ongoing immigration enforcement operation.
• The nation of Palau has agreed to take in dozens of individuals from the US in return for increased assistance, after concluding a memorandum of understanding with US authorities.

Furthermore, a Democratic lawmaker has filed a lawsuit to demand the stripping of a political figure’s name from a prominent performing arts center in the capital.

Analysts have also noted that comments regarding foreign petroleum resources reflect a wider ideology in certain circles of “economic expansionism”, leading to parallels with past foreign policy actions.