EU competition chief Teresa Ribera has pointed to US visa restrictions for European Commission officials. including former commissioner Thierry Breton, as a case for European digital sovereignty.
Speaking at a European Parliament event on Tuesday, Ribera said the EU cannot “normalize” threats of US sanctions to enforce EU digital rules and must “develop our capacities”.
“We cannot allow anyone to try to influence our decisions, our values, our economy and our well-functioning services,” Ribera warned.
Her comments came in defense of EU digital regulation – including the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the Digital Markets Act (DMA) – particularly in light of continued opposition from the Trump administration and major US tech companies.
Ribera argued for greater sovereignty of European technology as a bloc prepare a package of measures aimed at boosting European technology production, particularly in chips and AI, at the end of May.
In her remarks, she said the aim was to “reduce pressure” from foreign companies operating outside Europe or companies “that don’t respect our rules”.
Her comments come just weeks after the top US envoy to the EU, Andrew Puzder, warned the bloc about future technology sovereignty rules, describing them as protectionist. in an interview with Euractiv.
However, Ribera added that the EU had “the right to protect the rules” that “guide our digital society to function”, while acknowledging the financial and technical complexities involved in reducing dependence on foreign technologies.
(aw)
