ISTANBUL

The US has imposed visa restrictions on five individuals accused of leading organized efforts to coerce platforms into censoring "American viewpoints," Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Tuesday.

"The State Department is taking decisive action against five individuals who have led organized efforts to coerce American platforms to censor, demonetize, and suppress American viewpoints they oppose," Rubio said in a statement.

While the statement did not specify the individuals or NGOs being targeted, Rubio in a post on the US social media company X’s platform took aim at "ideologues in Europe" and said the US "will no longer tolerate these egregious acts of extraterritorial censorship."

He accused these individuals of being "radical activists" who advanced censorship crackdowns by foreign states, targeting American speakers and companies.

Rubio said he determined that their entry, presence or activities in the US "have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences" for the country.

"Based on these determinations, the Department has taken steps to impose visa restrictions on agents of the global censorship-industrial complex who, as a result, will be generally barred from entering the United States," he said.

In addition, the Department of Homeland Security may initiate removal proceedings against certain individuals, making them deportable, Rubio added.

"(US) President (Donald) Trump has been clear that his America First foreign policy rejects violations of American sovereignty. Extraterritorial overreach by foreign censors targeting American speech is no exception," he said, adding his agency is ready to "expand today's list if other foreign actors do not reverse course."