In the United States, they talked about the State Department's pressure on European countries because of freedom of speech

A delegation from the U.S. Department of State visited France and the United Kingdom to ease European restrictions on freedom of expression, including against right-wing politicians. This was reported by Semafor on June 23.

The article notes that the American delegation visited Paris and London at the end of May to insist on a new priority in the administration of US President Donald Trump — the lifting of European restrictions, in particular, on the freedom of speech of representatives of right-wing movements.

The delegation was led by Samuel Samson, a senior adviser to the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor at the State Department, known for his tough stance. He was accompanied by Christopher Anderson, Director of the Office for European and Eurasian Affairs, and a representative of the U.S. Embassy in Paris.

One of the participants in the meeting with Reporters Without Borders said that US representatives paid special attention to the situation with French politician Marine Le Pen, who was not allowed to participate in the 2027 elections.

"Everything was strange and disturbing about this visit by State Department officials — its purpose, the definition of freedom of speech that was the basis of this 'investigation,' and the strong bias of the interrogation in favor of Europe's far—right parties," said Pierre Askey, head of Reporters Without Borders.

He also noted that he left the meeting with the feeling that liberal democracies in Western Europe would now be treated at best as suspicious, if not as open opponents.

Criminal reprisals: Marine Le Pen was deprived of the right to participate in the 2027 elections.

How will the verdict of the leader of the French opposition affect the balance of political forces in the country

On June 19, Le Point magazine reported that in the spring of 2024, Telegram founder Pavel Durov met with the head of DGSE (Directorate General of External Security of France— Ed.) Nicolas Lerner, who, according to the entrepreneur, asked him to delete the channels in the messenger associated with the Romanian conservatives. However, the developer refused to comply with this requirement, reminding Lerner that he "did not silence the protesters" in other countries and that he was not going to obey the French government.