Rubio orders US diplomats to launch lobbying blitz against Europe's tech law

Source: Reuters

Exclusive-Rubio orders US diplomats to launch lobbying blitz against Europe's tech law

Humeyra Pamuk
Thu, August 7, 2025 at 1:04 AM EDT
5 min read

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Donald Trump's administration has instructed U.S. diplomats in Europe to launch a lobbying campaign to build opposition to the European Union's Digital Services Act (DSA), which Washington says stifles free speech and imposes costs on U.S. tech companies, an internal diplomatic cable seen by Reuters showed.

In a State Department cable dated August 4, signed by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the agency said the EU was pursuing "undue" restrictions on freedom of expression in its efforts to combat hateful speech, misinformation and disinformation, and the DSA was further enhancing these curbs.

The EU's DSA is a landmark law meant to make the online environment safer and fairer by compelling tech giants to do more to tackle illegal content, including hate speech and child sexual abuse material.

Yet Trump has made combating censorship - particularly what he sees as the stifling of conservative voices online - a major theme of his administration. Top U.S. officials, including Vice President JD Vance, have focused on European officials and regulations, accusing them of "censoring" Americans, an accusation that the European Union rejects.

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