France has strongly condemned the U.S. visa ban imposed on Thierry Breton, a former European Union commissioner, along with four other European figures. The move by the Trump administration targets officials involved in EU regulations affecting U.S. tech companies.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot called the bans “strongly condemnable,” emphasizing that the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), led by Breton, has no extraterritorial reach and does not affect the United States, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
Breton, who served as French finance minister and EU Commissioner for the Internal Market from 2019 to 2024, was described by U.S. officials as a “mastermind” behind the DSA, which aims to regulate online content and combat disinformation.
“Is McCarthy’s witch hunt back? The DSA was democratically adopted in Europe and does not target the U.S.,” Breton wrote on X, criticizing the visa ban.
The incident highlights ongoing tensions between U.S. authorities and European regulators over tech and social media rules.