The United States will not tolerate the heavy fines imposed by the European Union on American tech giants Apple and Meta, a White House spokesperson said Thursday, labelling them as a "new form of economic extortion."
White House National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes stated that extraterritorial regulations specifically targeting and undermining American companies, stifling innovation, and allowing censorship will be viewed as trade barriers and a direct threat to a free civil society.
The European Commission announced financial penalties against Apple and Meta (Facebook, Instagram) on Wednesday for competition violations, amid ongoing tensions with Donald Trump over tariffs.
Apple received a €500 million fine for abusive clauses in its App Store that disadvantage app suppliers and their customers.
Meta, a leading social media company, was fined €200 million for breaching personal data usage regulations.
Donald Trump frequently criticises the taxes, fines, and regulatory constraints imposed by Europe on American digital services.
According to Brian Hughes, the “malicious targeting of American businesses and customers by the EU must stop.”
"End the EU’s regulatory spiral of doom!" Hughes declared in his statement.
The European Union is currently negotiating with the US administration for the removal of tariffs imposed by the American president.
However, European Commissioner Teresa Ribera stated these fines are not part of this trade dispute but are simply an enforcement of the law.
