US threatened Europe with consequences over restrictions on Starlink - FT
Kyiv • UNN
The US ambassador warned the EU of consequences if SpaceX's access to European frequencies is restricted. Brussels seeks to strengthen technological sovereignty.
European companies will face "destructive" retaliatory measures from Washington if Brussels continues with plans to restrict American competitors, such as Elon Musk's SpaceX, from accessing parts of the European market. U.S. Ambassador to the EU Andrew Puzder warned of this in an interview with the Financial Times, UNN writes.
Details
Andrew Puzder's warning came after the European Commission proposed this year reserving part of its frequency band, which allows smartphones to connect directly to satellites, for European players. This will limit frequencies available to Chinese and American companies such as SpaceX, which operates the Starlink satellite network.
Asked whether European companies should fear retaliatory measures, Puzder told the FT that they "should be careful, because this could happen, and it would be very destructive for these companies," given the size of the American market.
The proposed changes to the bloc's frequency allocation have already drawn sharp criticism from SpaceX, which warned that the move could lead to deteriorating communications in Ukraine, where its Starlink service has been crucial for civilian and military communications since Russia's full-scale invasion, the publication notes.
The proposed changes are part of broader efforts to strengthen Europe's technological sovereignty.
European politicians seek to reduce their dependence on American technology amid concerns about the unpredictability of U.S. President Donald Trump and the risk of relying on foreign companies for critical infrastructure.
The European Commission presented the Cloud and AI Development Act, which would introduce sovereignty requirements for providers of sensitive cloud services while seeking to help European technology companies expand and provide alternatives to American technology companies.
Puzder said he recognized Europe's right to protect sensitive government information, but warned against using legislation to give domestic companies an advantage at the expense of American competitors.
"If the goal is to make the United States less competitive, I don't think that is a legitimate goal of such legislation," Puzder said. "You will not make European companies more competitive by making American companies less competitive.
"We have best-in-class products in this field. They are reliable products, they are proven products. We don't need some synchronized mediocrity," he said.
The ambassador also questioned whether the EU's implementation of its Digital Markets Act, which aims to limit the influence of the world's largest technology companies, is truly intended to improve competition or rather to generate revenue for the European budget, given the multibillion-dollar fines imposed on American companies.
"You start to wonder whether we're trying to fight competition in the digital market, or whether we're trying to generate revenue from American companies for the benefit of Europe?" he said.
Puzder argued that Europe's ambitions to strengthen its own technology sector risk being undermined by its regulatory approach and the deterrence of investment by American companies, as U.S. technology companies become increasingly frustrated with EU regulatory restrictions and fines.
Rather than trying to curb the dominance of American companies, Brussels and Washington should join forces to compete with China in the race to develop artificial intelligence, Puzder said, echoing Trump's comments that "the worst thing that can happen is that we lose this race to China."
The ambassador urged Europe to "move away from this regulatory mindset where they try to stop everything, because we are in a race with China"—both in artificial intelligence and in quantum computing.
He said that the US has the ingredients to win this race, "but it would be much easier if we worked with Europe rather than fought it".
The European Commission stated that the proposal "encourages market entry and the diversification of EU suppliers, while remaining open to operators from outside the EU".