EU could fine, suspend, even ban X if bloc's rules not respected: EU official

ANKARA

The European Union could fine, suspend, or even ban the social media platform X if it does not respect the bloc’s rules, EU Commission’s executive vice-president said Monday.

Executive Vice-President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy of the EU Commission and former French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne recalled, in an interview with broadcaster France Inter, that EU Commissioner Henna Virkkunen extended the investigation against Elon Musk’s X last week, formerly known as Twitter, “in order to have a legal basis to go before the judge.”

The EU has rules that will be applied, Sejourne stressed and added that the commissioner’s report would take into account all the debates that occurred in the last few weeks, including those about Musk’s political interference in Europe after he expressed support for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party ahead of the Feb. 23 general elections in Germany.

“The report will come out, the file will be brought to the judge, sanctions can be very very strong and amount to billions of euros. In the end, if it is not respected, it could lead to a ban, a suspension (of X),” Sejourne explained.

European defense in Trump era

As US President-elect Donald Trump is gearing up to take office later today, the EU official said the Americans “remain” the bloc’s allies “but will be defending more their interests.”

In the face of the American strategy that “seeks to recalibrate the trade relations, Europeans should be able to defend their interests,” Sejourne said, calling for European unity.

“There are opportunities in this discussion… particularly about the topic of second life insurance after NATO, which is European defense. We must be able to seize this opportunity, Americans want to disengage from Europe to focus on the Pacific, it is the time to realize the European defense,” Sejourne emphasized.

Noting that Trump’s administration was using the “language of force,” Sejourne said the “slightest European inconsistency” would be considered a “weakness.”