US States Its Decision to Counter the EU “Censorship”

The administration of US President Donald Trump will fund efforts to “promote freedom of speech” in European countries in an attempt to counter EU rules that Washington calls censorship. This was reported by Reuters, according to European Pravda. According to journalists, US Assistant Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers is embarking on a tour of European cities to discuss freedom of speech with officials and other individuals. Rogers will visit Dublin, Budapest, Warsaw and Munich. As is well known, American officials strongly oppose the EU Digital Services Act and the UK Online Safety Bill, which, according to the US, restrict freedom of speech, particularly criticism of immigration policy, and impose burdensome requirements on American technology companies. Rogers stated that the aim of her work would be to provide grants that would promote freedom of speech in European countries. “I want to promote freedom of speech in Western allied democracies, and that is what I will be doing by providing grants,” the official said. Last week, the Financial Times reported that Rogers had discussed with members of Nigel Farage’s far-right Reform UK party “a plan to fund think tanks and charities that align with Trump’s Make America Great Again policy”. The US State Department did not confirm the specific funding, but called the administration’s plan “a transparent, lawful use of resources to advance US interests and values abroad”. On 5 December, the United States unveiled its new national security strategy. The document criticizes the European Union, in particular for “censoring free speech and suppressing political opposition”.