Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, will not hesitate to seek the US President Trump‘s intervention if the European Union unfairly targets the company with its digital regulations, according to Meta‘s global policy director Joel Kaplan.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Kaplan said Meta would alert the U.S. government to any discriminatory treatment while continuing to operate within EU laws, Bloomberg reported. The statement comes amid escalating tensions between U.S. tech companies and European regulators.
Meta has already faced over €2 billion in EU penalties for violating antitrust and data protection rules, and is currently under investigation for potential breaches of the Digital Services Act regarding minor protection, according to Bloomberg.
The confrontation unfolds as transatlantic relations deteriorate, with Vice President JD Vance criticizing EU social media regulations as restrictions on free speech during the Munich gathering. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz rebuked Vance’s comments as interference in German democratic processes, particularly regarding right-wing parties.
Kaplan, who replaced Nick Clegg as global affairs chief in January following Trump’s re-election, emphasized Meta’s commitment to fighting misinformation while acknowledging differing perspectives on what constitutes false information. The company has introduced Community Notes to enable user-driven fact-checking across its platforms.
US President Trump has already signaled his concern over EU tech regulations, describing them as a “form of taxation” during his January appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
The conflict extends to artificial intelligence regulation, with Meta indicating it likely won’t join the EU’s upcoming AI code of conduct. Kaplan cautioned against measuring regulatory success by the size of fines imposed, arguing that the EU’s tech regulations have placed its economy at a “tremendous disadvantage.”