The White House has hit Euro-Atlantic unity: The United States imposed sanctions against Europeans

The United States of America imposed sanctions in the form of a ban on entry for five Europeans, including former EU Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton. This was announced by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

"The State Department is taking decisive action against five people who led an organized campaign to put pressure on American platforms in order to censor, deprive monetization and suppress dissenting American views," the statement said.

At the same time, Rubio called them "radical activists" and stated that the entry of Europeans, presence or activity in The United States could have potentially serious negative consequences for the country's foreign policy. According to him, the State Department is ready to expand this list if other foreign entities do not change their course.

At the same time, the US Department of the Interior has not yet provided details about who is affected by the sanctions. However, according to available information, Thierry Breton, who was the European Commissioner for the internal market from 2019 to 2024, as well as four representatives of non-profit organizations that allegedly fight "disinformation and hate speech on the Internet," fell under restrictions. In particular, they may be Josephine Ballon and Anna-Lena von Hodenberg from the non-profit organization HateAid, as well as Imran Ahmed and Claire Melford.

In response to Rubio's statement, France strongly condemned the US sanctions.

"France condemns in the strongest terms the visa restrictions imposed by the United States on former Minister and Commissioner Thierry Breton and four other prominent European figures. The peoples of Europe are free and sovereign, and others cannot impose on them the rules governing their digital space," said French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barraud.

In turn, Thierry Breton criticized the "whim of McCarthyism" in response to the sanctions. He recalled that "90% of the democratically elected European Parliament and all 27 member states unanimously voted for the EU Digital Services Regulation (DSA)," and noted that "censorship is not where you think."

Recall, the US administration has repeatedly criticized censorship in Europe. Including in connection with the fine of 120 million euros imposed by the European Commission on Platform X for "insufficient transparency". In response, the administration of President Donald Trump threatened the European Union with retaliatory measures if it continues to restrict the activities of American companies.