Europe Can’t Defend Democracy on US Servers

European democracy faces a coordinated assault. From the East, Putin is unleashing unprecedented propaganda campaigns that sway elections and erode pro-Ukraine majorities in the European Council. From the West, United States President Donald Trump threatens retaliatory tariffs if Europe enforces its own rules. He brands the taxation of US tech giants on par with European firms, the user rights enshrined in the Digital Services Act, and the competition sanctions under the Digital Markets Act as discrimination against US companies—essentially demanding that Europe renounce its own democratic rules in the digital realm. European sovereignty hangs in the balance. As long as 80 percent of European digital products and services originate in the United States, blackmail will thrive.

Europe needs independent European infrastructure now—especially home-grown social networks that preserve a level playing field for information, safeguard media freedom and guarantee genuine freedom of speech, including the right to access facts instead of being fed lies and propaganda. The recent TikTok deal in the United States, where Trump toys with turning the platform into a MAGA propaganda engine alongside friendly investors, should send chills through Europe. We know the Orban playbook too well. US platforms amplify Russian disinformation and drown political debate in noise. Romania repeated a presidential election after its secret service uncovered thousands of influencers paid to boost an obscure candidate. Even in the run-up to the repetition of the canceled election, Global Witness found TikTok’s algorithm delivered almost three times more far-right content to newly registered, politically balanced users than any other political material.

European platforms that reject toxic algorithms and surveillance-grade data profiling constitute the foundation of digital-era democracy.