US Rejects Visas to Former European Union Official and Additional Figures Concerning Online Platform Rules
The US State Department stated it would refuse entry permits to a group of five people, among them a former EU commissioner, for allegedly seeking to "coerce" American social media platforms into silencing viewpoints they disagree with.
"These individuals and aggressive non-profits have advanced censorship crackdowns by foreign states - in each case targeting US voices and US firms," said US diplomat Marco Rubio.
The former European tech regulator suggested that a "targeted campaign" was underway.
Breton was described as the "architect" of the European Union's online content law, which enforces speech regulations on digital platforms.
A Divisive Regulation
However, the act has frustrated certain right-leaning Americans who view it as an attempt to silence right-wing opinions. EU authorities rejects this characterization.
Breton has clashed with Elon Musk, owner of platform X, over requirements to follow EU rules.
EU regulators recently fined X €120m over its blue tick badges – the first fine under the DSA. Regulators stated the platform's system was "deceptive" because the firm was not "meaningfully verifying users".
In response, Musk's site prevented the European body from running advertisements on its platform.
Reactions and Broader Bans
Responding to the entry restriction, Breton posted on X: "To our American friends: Censorship does not lie where you think it is."
Another listed individual, who heads the UK-based disinformation research group, was also listed.
A senior US diplomat the official accused the GDI of using US taxpayer money "to exhort suppression and blacklisting of American speech and media".
A GDI spokesperson said the visa sanctions as "an authoritarian attack on free expression and an egregious act of government censorship".
"These measures today are unethical, unlawful, and contrary to American values," they stated.
Another figure of the an online hate watchdog, a nonprofit that fights digital hatred and misinformation, was similarly issued a ban.
The undersecretary called Mr Ahmed a "key collaborator with efforts to misuse the state apparatus against US citizens".
Also subject to bans were Anna-Lena von Hodenberg and Josephine Ballon of a German organization, which the US officials said aided in implementing the DSA.
In a statement, the two leaders described it as an "attempt to silence by a government that is increasingly disregarding the rule of law".
"We will not be intimidated by a government that uses accusations of censorship to silence those who stand up for fundamental freedoms," they added.
Official Rationale
The Secretary of State stated that action was initiated to enact visa restrictions on "agents of the global censorship-industrial complex" who would be "typically prohibited from entering the United States".
"President Trump has been explicit that his America First diplomatic stance rejects infringements of US autonomy. Foreign-imposed regulations by foreign censors targeting American speech is unacceptable," he affirmed.
