The European Commission opened two antitrust investigations into Google and Meta.
On Thursday, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) threatened to take countermeasures against the European Union (EU) over what it described as the bloc’s controversial regulations on service providers.
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“If the EU and EU Member States insist on continuing to restrict, limit, and deter the competitiveness of U.S. service providers through discriminatory means, the United States will have no choice but to begin using every tool at its disposal to counter these unreasonable measures,” the USTR posted on X.
Potential countermeasures could include assessing fees or imposing restrictions on foreign services. The agency also warned that it could adopt a similar approach toward other countries pursuing what it called an EU-style regulatory strategy in this area.
The USTR alleged that the EU and certain member states have pursued a sustained pattern of discriminatory and harassing lawsuits, taxes, fines, and directives targeting U.S. service providers.
US threatens retaliation on EU firms including Accenture, Siemens, Spotify, DHL, and SAP over digital taxes hitting Google, Meta, and Amazon. USTR calls EU measures “discriminatory” and warns of escalation if enforcement continues. pic.twitter.com/WTwzzXLpBc
— MKTNews (@MKTNews_Global) December 16, 2025
“The United States has raised concerns with the EU for years on these matters without meaningful engagement or basic acknowledgement of U.S. concerns,” the USTR added.
The USTR also said EU service providers have operated freely in the United States for decades, benefiting from access to the U.S. market and consumers, while naming several European technology giants with expansive presence in the country.
The latest remarks reflect growing frustration among U.S. officials over the EU’s tightening technology regulations and lawsuits targeting U.S. tech giants.
The European Commission has recently opened two antitrust investigations into U.S. tech giants Google and Meta, and fined Elon Musk’s platform X 120 million euros (US$140 million) in its first non-compliance decision under the Digital Services Act.
#US President Donald Trump confirms at a press conference his interference in the general elections held in #Chile on December 14 and in #Honduras on November 30. pic.twitter.com/Y2yydXRAma
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Source: Xinhua
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