US President Donald Trump accused the European Union of 'looting' American companies after imposing a new fine on Google, which he said raised the total fines imposed on the American company to more than $18 billion.

Trump said on Truth Social: 'Here is the European Union back at its usual practices, targeting major American companies directly as always! After imposing fines on Apple for no apparent reason, amounting to $15 billion, on Meta for $3 billion, on Amazon for $2.5 billion, and many other companies.'

The US President referred to the imposition of another fine of $1 billion 'without any explanation,' describing this as 'a highly illegal and discriminatory practice at these high levels during the first year of the administration of "Sleepy Joe Biden."'

US President Donald Trump: Reuters

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America is not Europe's 'piggy bank'

Trump pledged that this practice he spoke of 'will not continue' during his administration of the United States, saying that the United States 'is not a piggy bank for Europe, and we will not allow it to be.'

The US President said that his administration will immediately initiate an investigation under Section 301 into the practice of 'looting' American companies, adding that 'the European Union will pay a very heavy price for this completely illegal and unethical behavior, which I have constantly warned them about.'

Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 allows the United States to investigate foreign practices it deems discriminatory and to respond by imposing tariffs.

And he anticipated the complete cancellation of 'the penalties' and the imposition of a large tariff on the European Union 'as soon as possible.'

Why did the European Union fine Google?

The European Union imposed two fines on Google yesterday totaling 890 million euros (about $1 billion), fining the American giant 460 million euros for preferring its own services, such as Google Flights or Google Hotels.

As for the second fine, amounting to 430 million euros, it was imposed because Google did not allow app developers to show free offers to consumers outside its online store, Google Play.

This total fine on Google is the largest against a single company under the competition law known as the Digital Markets Act, after the European Union imposed penalties of 200 million euros on Meta and 500 million euros on Apple in 2025.

The law came into effect in 2024, to curb what the European Union considers abuses by big tech companies, in an effort to ensure fair competition in the digital sector.

The fines on Google had been expected for months as part of an investigation that began in 2024, but Brussels faced accusations of delaying the step for fear of harming relations with Washington.

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement yesterday, Thursday, that the fine constitutes 'a real risk to the stability of transatlantic relations,' considering that this type of action 'creates uncertainty about US exports of goods and services.'

The Trump administration has previously accused Brussels of targeting US technology companies, threatening to retaliate against the European Union by imposing tariffs.