2025-12-24 12:43
publication
2025-12-24 12:43
Former EU Commissioner Thierry Breton and four heads of non-governmental organizations from Great Britain and Germany have been banned from entering the United States, issued on Tuesday by the US Department of State, the British BBC reported on Wednesday.
In a statement published by the American ministry, it was written that five people were subject to visa restrictions. They were described as “radical activists”. It said that these are people who “conduct organized activities to force American platforms to censor (…) and suppress American viewpoints.”
The BBC reported that one of the people covered by American sanctions is Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner for the Internal Market in 2019-24. The Department of State accuses him of being the originator of the EU's Digital Services Regulation (DSA).whose purpose is, among others, fighting disinformation, increasing transparency in advertising placement and strengthening the rights of online users. DSA has been in force in the EU since February 2024.
In reaction to the State Department's decision, Breton posted on his channel on the X platform the following entry: “To our American friends: censorship is not where you think”.
The list of people subject to sanctions also includes two Britons: Imran Ahmed, chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), and Clare Melford, head of the Global Disinformation Index (GDI).
US Undersecretary of State Sarah B. Rogers accused GDI of using US taxpayers' money “to advocate censorship and blacklist the US (…) press.” A spokesman for the organization told the BBC that “the announced visa sanctions constitute an authoritarian attack on freedom of speech and a blatant act of government censorship.”
Washington authorities' bans also included Anna-Lena von Hodenberg and Josephine Ballon of HateAid, a German organization that the State Department says helped enforce the DSA. In a statement provided to the BBC, both directors declared that they “will not be intimidated by a government that accuses (others) of censorship in order to silence defenders of human rights and freedom of speech.”
The EU strongly criticizes the US ban
The European Commission on Wednesday strongly condemned the decision of Donald Trump's administration to impose an entry ban to the US on former EU Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton, and four heads of non-governmental organizations from the UK and Germany.
The EC emphasized in a statement that freedom of expression is a fundamental right in Europe, as well as a common fundamental value of both the United States and the entire democratic world. She also informed that she had asked Washington for explanations and was in contact with the local administration.
The document recalls that the European Union is an open, single market based on specific rules and has the sovereign right to introduce economic regulations based on its own democratic principles and international obligations. – Our digital rules ensure a safe, fair and level playing field for all businesses. They are applied fairly and without discrimination, the Commission stressed, adding that, if necessary, it will “react quickly and decisively to defend its regulatory autonomy against unjustified measures”.
This is a reaction to the announcement published on Tuesday by the US Department of State imposing visa restrictions on five people, including the former commissioner and the heads of British and German non-governmental organizations, for their activities in support of EU digital regulations. These people were described as “radical activists” who wanted to force American internet platforms to accept censorship.
The American ministry accused Breton of being the originator of the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA), which regulates the operation of online platforms and search engines, including combating disinformation and ensuring the transparency of advertising, including political advertising.
From Brussels Jowita Kiwnik Pargana (PAP)
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From London Marta Zabłocka (PAP)
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