(Bloomberg) — The European Union hit back at US President Donald Trump’s claims that digital regulations abroad are unfair, a day after he threatened to impose tariffs and other penalties on countries that tax online services ranging from social media to e-commerce.
“It’s the sovereign right of the EU and its member states to regulate our economic activities on our territory that are consistent with our democratic values,” European Commission Spokeswoman Paula Pinho told reporters Tuesday in Brussels.
Most Read from Bloomberg
Without specifying any government, Trump threatened export restrictions on US advanced technology and semiconductors and higher tariffs in retaliation for nations’ digital services taxes that hit American companies. His post on social media late Monday said that the measures “are all designed to harm, or discriminate against, American Technology.”
Trump has long railed against EU tech and antitrust regulation over US tech giants including Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Apple Inc. and Meta Platforms Inc. The US has also recently pushed the European Commission to water down its AI Code of Practice.
In his post, Trump added that “they also, outrageously, give a complete pass to China’s largest Tech Companies.”
The Commission on Tuesday fired back at Trump’s accusations that the rules — such as the EU’s Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act — are discriminatory and targeted at the US.
“The DSA does not look at the color of a company, at the jurisdiction of a company, or at the owner of a company,” European Commission spokesman Thomas Regnier said. “The DSA and the DMA both apply to all platforms and companies operating in the EU irrespective of their place of establishment.”
Deal Pending
The latest disagreement comes as the EU is preparing to publish legislation this week formalizing details of a joint trade framework it struck with Washington that will remove tariffs on certain US exports.
Until that happens, the US won’t lower its 27.5% tariff rate on EU automobiles and car parts to a previously agreed 15%.
The deal has been criticized by several member states and the European Commission, which handles trade matters for the EU, previously described it as asymmetric and not in the bloc’s favor.
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen defended the agreement, describing it as “a strong, if not perfect deal.”
