Officials from President Donald Trump’s administration have repeatedly criticized restrictions aimed at online speech
US Undersecretary of State Sarah Rogers has justified Washington’s decision to impose sanctions on several Europeans, stating that “extraterritorial censorship of Americans” weakens free speech and innovation.
Last week, the US State Department placed sanctions on five individuals, including British nationals Imran Ahmed and Clare Melford, German citizens Anna-Lena von Hodenberg and Josephine Ballon, and former EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said those targeted had “led organized efforts to force American platforms to penalize American viewpoints they oppose.”
In an interview with the Sunday Times, Rogers said the measures were intended to safeguard free expression and the competitiveness of the US technology sector. “These are people who, in many cases, received government funds to ruin American businesses in order to suppress American speech,” she said.
“Ultimately, these are serious decisions that are up to the Secretary of State and take into account all of our foreign policy priorities. But free speech is one of those priorities, and so is the continued ability of the American tech sector to lead and innovate,” she added.
The sanctions come at a time when the dispute between the US and the EU over online speech regulation, digital platform governance, and the scope of national laws beyond their borders is expanding. Elon Musk, whose platform X was fined about €120 million ($140 million) by EU regulators for what they described as violations of transparency rules in the bloc’s Digital Services Act, welcomed the move, calling it “so great.”
Previously, Musk criticized the penalty, calling the EU a “bureaucratic monster” that should be abolished, while accusing Brussels of trying to pressure X into censoring speech.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who appointed Breton himself, accused Washington of “coercion and intimidation.” UK Labour MP Chi Onwurah said banning individuals over speech disputes undermines the free speech the US administration claims to defend.
The rift was reflected in Washington’s latest National Security Strategy, which warned that the EU faces potential “civilizational erasure” due to restrictions on free speech, suppression of political opposition, and regulatory pressure on innovation.