Southern Europe chief at TikTok says European Commission suspension is ‘a political decision that goes far beyond’ compliance with rules

The head of southern Europe TikTok says in an interview with Lusa that the European Commission’s suspension of the social network on professional devices is a “political decision that goes far beyond” complying with European rules.

“In a sense, we understand that the debate can be more political” in the United States, but “here in Europe we have very strict rules” at the European and national level, “which we respect,” says Giacomo Lev Manheimer , “Head of Government Relations and Public Policy, Southern Europe” (responsible for government relations and public policy for Southern Europe) TikTok.

“That’s why we don’t see [que a suspensão pela Comissão Europeia] is within this framework of the rules, first of all we consider it as a political decision that goes far beyond the rules and compliance with European rules,” the official says.

The European Commission announced last week it was suspending the use of the TikTok app on its employees’ professional devices to protect community leaders from cybersecurity threats, and employees must now remove it by March 15.

When asked if he considers this decision a politicization of technology, Giacomo Lev Manheimer answers in the affirmative.

“Of course we are not blind, we know we are at the epicenter of geopolitical tensions,” but in the midst of this conflict, there is “a complete misunderstanding of what TikTok is,” he continues.

That’s because TikTok is “not a Chinese car, but a global company,” he emphasizes, pointing out that the company’s management is “between Singapore and the United States.”

Also, “Our data is located in the US. We really feel like we shouldn’t be at the center of this geopolitical conflict” and “we can even understand why the pressure in the US is high” regarding the social network, but “Honestly, we don’t see any reason for this in Europe,” the person emphasizes. responsible for the social network owned by the Chinese ByteDance.

Asked if TikTok is a new target after Huawei, Giacomo Lev Manheimer notes that the social network “is a different company.”

Again, “I think this overlap is a mistake,” but if “you look at the facts behind the company, they are two different companies,” TikTok’s manager for Southern Europe added.

“I don’t talk about them [Huawei]but I’m talking about us: we don’t have Chinese government participation in our company, we don’t have Chinese managers on TikTok, the data is not in China,” he lists.

In addition, investors include the founder, employees of the company, and “only US institutional investors.”

So “I think it’s hard to put TikTok at the epicenter of geopolitical tensions when you look at the facts,” but sometimes “prejudice” can lead to this attempt at comparison, he said.

The European Commission justified the decision on cybersecurity issues, which took TikTok officials by surprise.

The decision regarding China’s TikTok, owned by ByteDance, came after the US banned federal devices in the country.