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USTR threatens countermeasures after EU fine on Musk’s X

By Thomson Reuters Dec 16, 2025 | 12:29 PM

WASHINGTON, Dec 16 (Reuters) – The Trump administration on Tuesday threatened a ‍wide range of possible retaliatory measures after European Union tech regulators imposed a fine on ‌Elon Musk’s X, ‌saying it could leverage fees or restrictions on foreign services.

The Office of the U.S. ​Trade Representative, in a post on ‍X, said ​it would “use every ​tool at its disposal” ‍and cited a number of companies including Accenture, DHL, Siemens and Spotify, among others.

“Should responsive ‍measures be necessary, U.S. law permits the assessment of ‍fees ‍or restrictions on ​foreign services, among ​other ⁠actions,” the office ‌of the USTR said in the post.

(Reporting by Ryan Patrick Jones and Costas Pitas; writing by Susan ⁠Heavey)