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The European Commission has begun issuing disposable phones and basic laptops to some staff traveling to the United States to avoid espionage, a security measure traditionally applied only to travel to China or to war-torn Ukraine for fear of Russian tracking.
According to Financial Times, Commissioners and senior officials who will be traveling to the IMF and World Bank spring meetings next week have already received new instructions.
«They are worried that the United States will gain access to the Commission’s systems,» said one official.
The EU’s attitude toward the United States as a potential source of security threat is clearly demonstrated by how much their relations have deteriorated since Donald Trump returned to the presidency in January. He accused the EU of being a bloc created to «rip off the states» and announced 20% «reciprocal» tariffs on exports from the union, which he later halved within 90 days.
At the same time, Trump has sought to mend relations with Russia, pressured Ukraine over a rare earths deal, temporarily suspending military aid, and threatened to withdraw security guarantees from Europe, spurring rearmament efforts across the continent.
«The Transatlantic Alliance is over»,” another EU official summarized in a comment to the publication.
The European Commission confirmed that it has updated its security advice for the United States, but clarified that it has not provided «any written instructions» on the use of disposable phones. Instead, a recommendation was added to turn off phones at the border and hide them in special cases. According to Luuk van Middelaar, director of the Brussels Institute for Geopolitics think tank, this advice was not unexpected.
«Washington is neither Beijing nor Moscow, but it is an adversary that is inclined to use extra-legal methods to promote its interests and power».
Middelaar recalled that the administration of President Barack Obama faced accusations of spying on the phone of then German Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2013.
«Democratic administrations are using the same tactics,” he said. «This is the Commission’s acceptance of reality».
Also, when traveling to the United States, there is an additional risk that border personnel will seize visitors’ phones and computers and check their contents. Tourists and visiting scholars from Europe, for example, have been denied entry into the country after social media comments or posts criticizing the Trump administration’s policies were found on their devices. In March, the French government said that their researcher was denied entry because he expressed a «personal opinion» on US research policy.