The US State Department said it would deny visas to five people, including a former EU commissioner, for seeking to "coerce" American social media platforms into suppressing viewpoints they oppose, BBC reported. 

"These radical activists and weaponized NGOs have advanced censorship crackdowns by foreign states - in each case targeting American speakers and American companies," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.

Thierry Breton, the former top tech regulator at the European Commission, suggested that a "witch hunt" was taking place, according to BBC.