The French leader has responded to visa curbs aimed at a number of high-ranking bloc officials during a dispute over digital regulations
French President Emmanuel Macron has stated that US visa restrictions on several senior EU officials constitute “intimidation and coercion” intended to weaken the bloc’s digital sovereignty and policies.
On Tuesday, the administration of US President Donald Trump unveiled new sanctions directed at Thierry Breton, the former European Commissioner for Internal Market who was appointed by Macron, along with four other officials. The US cited what it called “efforts to coerce American platforms to punish American viewpoints they oppose.”
The conflict centers on the EU’s Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act, which enforce rigorous competition and transparency rules on major online platforms. American officials have contended that this regulatory framework is biased, as most of the affected companies—such as Microsoft, Google, Meta, and Amazon—are based in the US. Breton was notably instrumental in shaping the EU’s digital regulations.
Frictions increased after the EU Commission levied a €120 million ($130 million) fine on Elon Musk’s platform X in early December under the Digital Services Act. US authorities denounced the penalty as damaging to free speech and as unfairly singling out an American firm.
In a Wednesday post on X, Macron asserted that the US sanctions “amount to intimidation and coercion aimed at undermining European digital sovereignty.” He further noted that the EU’s rules were democratically enacted and “are not meant to be determined outside Europe,” maintaining that they aim to “ensure fair competition among platforms, without targeting any third country.”
The EU Commission also denounced the US action, vowing it “will respond swiftly and decisively to defend our regulatory autonomy against unjustified measures.”
The discord between the US and the EU, partly over digital rules, was reflected in Washington’s new National Security Strategy published this month. The document cautioned the EU that it risks potential “civilizational erasure” because of the suppression of political opposition, restrictions on free speech, and what it termed “regulatory suffocation.”