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Germany's Merz on X fine: Obey our laws if you operate here

Published by Global Banking and Finance Review

Posted on December 9, 2025

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BERLIN, ‌Dec 9 (Reuters) - Foreign companies, including ‍those ‌from the United States, must obey ⁠German and ‌EU rules when they operate there, Germany's chancellor said on Tuesday, responding to ⁠U.S. President Donald Trump's criticism of a ​fine imposed on social media ‌platform X.

"Just as ⁠European and German companies have to follow the rules in America, ​sometimes facing very draconian punishments, so American companies must accept our rules here, and if they ​don't, ‍then there ​are possiblities for sanctioning them," Friedrich Merz told reporters.

"There are legal avenues for challenging (those sanctions), and they are available to all companies, ⁠European and American," he added.

Trump described on Monday as "nasty" ​the 120 million euro fine the European Commission levied on Elon Musk's social media ‌platform for violating European transparency rules.

(Reporting by Thomas EscrittEditing by Gareth Jones)

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