"Will Brussels ever stand up to Donald Trump and US big tech? Its current lack of action is not just a legal or economic failure: it is a moral one. It throws into question the very foundation of Europe's democratic identity. What is at stake is not merely the fate of Google or Meta, but the principle that Europe has the right to govern its own digital space according to its"
"own laws. If the EU cannot enforce its own laws then it is a vassal to Washington and to Silicon Valley, with Trump as its overlord. First, let us recount how we got here. In late July the European Commission accepted a humiliating deal with Trump that locked in a permanent 15% tariff on EU exports to the US."
"Europe received nothing in return. The indignity was all the greater because the commission also agreed to give well over $1tn to the US by way of investments and purchases of energy and military materiel. The deal exposed the fragility of Europe's dependence on the US. Less than a month later, Trump threatened crushing new tariffs if Europe enforced its laws against US tech firms on its own soil."
Brussels accepted a deal that locked in a permanent 15% tariff on EU exports to the US while committing over $1tn in investments and purchases, leaving Europe with nothing tangible in return. That arrangement revealed Europe’s fragility and dependence on the US. After Trump threatened crushing new tariffs to deter enforcement of EU laws against US tech firms, Europe largely refrained from retaliation, omitting invocation of its anti‑coercion instrument. Responses amounted to polite statements and a token fine on Google of less than 1% of annual revenue. Under Trump, US policy increasingly aims to undermine, rather than strengthen, European democratic autonomy.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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