"EU's Unelected, Undemocratic Power Pursuing Civilizational Suicide," Says Senior U.S. Official

EU Slaps X with $205 Million Fine
U.S. State Department: "Contradicts American Security"
Musk: "EU Should Be Dismantled"... Tensions Escalate

As the European Union (EU) imposed an astronomical fine on the social networking service X (formerly Twitter), Christopher Landau, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, criticized the move, stating, "An unelected, undemocratic power is pursuing a policy of civilizational suicide." According to Yonhap News, on the 6th (local time), Deputy Secretary Landau said, "These countries claim that transatlantic cooperation is the cornerstone of our collective security when they wear their NATO hats, but when they wear their EU hats, they often pursue an agenda that is entirely contrary to U.S. interests and security," adding, "Such contradictions cannot continue."

Christopher Rando, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, criticized the European Union, saying, "An unelected undemocratic power is pursuing a policy of civilizational suicide." Photo by AFP Yonhap News

Deputy Secretary Landau further stated, "The great nations of Europe must choose whether they are partners with us in defending the Western civilization they bequeathed to us, or not." He added, "We cannot continue to pretend to be partners while allowing unelected, undemocratic, and unrepresentative EU bureaucrats to push policies that amount to civilizational suicide."

On this day, he also shared a post by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on X, which read, "(The EU's fine) is not just an attack on X, but an attack by a foreign government on all American tech platforms and the American people." Landau emphasized, "The more serious issue is that the United States is in a military alliance with the very countries that are attacking us through the EU," adding, "European countries should not, on one hand, rely on the U.S. for security while, on the other hand, intentionally undermining America's own security through the unelected, undemocratic, and unrepresentative EU."

Observers note that Deputy Secretary Landau's strong remarks are in line with the new National Security Strategy (NSS) announced by the Donald Trump administration. In the NSS released on the 5th, the Trump administration stated that Europe, a long-standing U.S. ally, is facing "the grim prospect of civilizational extinction" and called for "restoring civilizational pride and eliminating suffocating regulations."

On the 5th (local time), the European Union imposed a fine of 120 million euros (approximately 205.9 billion KRW) on X's paid verification mark, the 'Blue Check,' citing key violations such as deceiving users and failing to ensure transparency in advertising storage. Photo by AFP Yonhap News

Earlier, on the 5th, the EU imposed a fine of 120 million euros (approximately 205.9 billion KRW) on X, citing major violations such as deceiving users, failing to ensure transparency in the advertising repository, and not providing public data needed by researchers. In response, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and owner of X, protested, saying, "The EU should be dismantled and sovereignty should return to individual countries," adding, "Only then can governments better represent their people."

In response, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski targeted Musk, sarcastically saying, "Go to Mars. There’s no Nazi salute censorship there," as tensions between the two sides continue. Musk previously sparked controversy in January at President Trump’s inauguration event by making a hand gesture reminiscent of a Nazi salute.