The European Commission is providing disposable cell phones and basic laptops to some of its employees who will travel to the United States as a precaution against espionage. This practice, usually applied on trips to China or Ukraine, will be adopted during the participation of senior EU NAS, which will take place from 21 to 26 April.
According to the Financial TimesSurveillance fear arose due to concerns that the United States can access the European Commission systems. The measures adopted follow the same protocol applied on trips to countries considered of high risk, such as China and Ukraine. “They are concerned about the possibility of the US joining the commission systems,” an employee told the British newspaper.
The measure reflects the climate of growing tension between Washington and Brussels since Donald Trump’s return to the US presidency in January. The Republican has adopted a hostile stance from the European Union, even claiming that the block “was created to harm the US.”
Trump recently implemented 20% reciprocal tariffs on European exports, which were later halved, with a
In addition, the former president pressured Ukraine to give in to strategic assets in exchange for military aid, suggested a realignment with Russia and threatened to remove safety guarantees from Europe, which boosted rearmament plans on the continent. “The transatlantic alliance is over,” a senior European employee said anonymously.
European Union authorities confirmed Financial Times that the US travel security guidelines have recently been updated. Recommendations include mobile phones when crossing the American border, the use of spy protection covers and the preference for visas issued in diplomatic documents, the so-called “laissez-passer” rather than national passports.
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Sending temporary devices reflects measures already applied in regions where espionage is seen as a concrete threat. According to Luuk Van Middelaar, director of the Brussels Institute of Geopolitics, “Washington is neither Beijing nor Moscow, but is an opponent inclined to use extralegal methods to promote his interests.” He recalls that in 2013 the Obama government was accused of stapling the then German chancellor, Angela Merkel phone. “Democratic governments also use the same tactics,” he said.
The European Commission’s recommendation also considers that US border agents have the legal right to seize electronic visitor provisions and examine their content. There are reports of European academics and tourists who have been prevented from entering the country due to the presence, in their cell phones or laptops, publications or documents critical to American politics.
In the coming days, a meeting between European Union commissioners and Washington representatives to deal with the growing commercial tension between the two sides is planned. The situation led the EU to approve retaliations against € 21 billion in US exports, although these measures have not yet been applied.
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At the same time, the United States has been undergoing European regulations that impact large technology companies and criticized the bloc’s judicial and administrative decisions, such as.
Although the European Commission states that there are no formal written instructions on the use of disposable cell phones, internal sources indicate that the EU diplomatic service is directly involved in the implementation of new guidelines.
