Tag Archives: United States

Trump recommits to U.S. allies but says they must pay ‘fair share’

President Trump addresses Joint Session of Congress. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

By Matt Spetalnick

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Donald Trump on Tuesday reaffirmed support for the United States’ longstanding security alliances around the world but insisted that friends and partners from Europe to the Middle East to the Pacific must “pay their fair share of the cost.”

In his first nationally televised speech to Congress since taking office on Jan. 20, Trump sought to reassure allies still uneasy over doubts he raised during the 2016 presidential campaign about his commitment to their defense and to maintaining a U.S. global leadership role.

But he also made clear that he expects those countries to shoulder more of the burden of their own security needs, echoing a campaign message that some allies had taken advantage of Washington’s generosity in providing them a security umbrella.

“Our foreign policy calls for a direct, robust and meaningful engagement with the world,” Trump told a joint session of Congress. “It is American leadership based on vital security interests that we share with our allies across the globe.”

He specifically assured NATO allies of his new administration’s continued commitment to the decades-old alliance. However, he made no mention of one of the main sources of European concern: his friendly overtures during the campaign toward Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“We strongly support NATO, an alliance forged through the bonds of two World Wars that dethroned fascism and a Cold War that defeated communism,” Trump said.

“But our partners must meet their financial obligations,” he said. “And now, based on our very strong and frank discussions, they are beginning to do just that.”

Then, deviating from his prepared remarks, Trump added: “In fact, I can tell you the money is pouring in. Very nice.” But he offered no specifics.

Some critics had accused Trump of failing to recognize the benefit that accrued to the United States of having strong democratic allies helping to stabilize volatile areas like the Middle East, Ukraine and South Asia.

Trump’s remarks followed the deployment earlier this month of senior Cabinet members to Brussels, Bonn and Munich, Germany, aimed at calming European worries.

The Europeans heard from Defense Secretary James Mattis that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization military alliance was not “obsolete” after all, despite Trump’s suggestions to the contrary.

Vice President Mike Pence told them that Russia would be “held accountable” for its actions in Ukraine.

Mattis made his first foreign trip to South Korea and Japan, where he sought to ease concerns about what Trump’s self-styled “America First” strategy means for U.S. foreign policy in Asia.

While seeming to tackle some of the doubts of U.S. allies, Trump still made clear that he wanted them to do more.

“We expect our partners, whether in NATO, in the Middle East, or the Pacific, to take a direct and meaningful role in both strategic and military operations, and pay their fair share of the cost,” he said.

(Reporting by Matt Spetalnick; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

U.S. consumer spending slows; inflation pushes higher

A shoppers carries bags with purchases through Quincy Market in downtown in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. January 11, 2017. REUTERS/Brian Snyder

By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. consumer spending rose less than expected in January as the largest monthly increase in inflation in four years eroded households’ purchasing power, pointing to moderate economic growth in the first quarter.

The surge in inflation raises the possibility of an interest rate increase from the Federal Reserve this month. While still below the U.S. central bank’s 2 percent target, inflation is now in the upper end of the range that Fed officials in December felt would be reached this year.

The Commerce Department said on Wednesday that consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, increased 0.2 percent after rising 0.5 percent in December. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast consumer spending gaining 0.3 percent in January.

Consumer spending is likely to remain supported amid promises by the Trump administration of sweeping tax cuts and increased infrastructure spending.

In a speech to Congress on Tuesday night, President Donald Trump said his economic team was working on a “historic tax reform that will reduce the tax rate on our companies” and promised a “massive” tax relief for the middle class. Trump offered no further details.

Consumer confidence has surged following Trump’s election victory, hitting a 15-1/2-year high in February.

In January the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index increased 0.4 percent – the largest gain since February 2013 – after rising 0.2 percent in December.

In the 12 months through January, the PCE price index jumped 1.9 percent. That was the biggest year-on-year gain since October 2012 and followed a 1.6 percent increase in December.

Excluding food and energy, the so-called core PCE price index rose 0.3 percent in January. That was the biggest increase since January 2012 and followed a 0.1 percent gain in December.

The core PCE price index increased 1.7 percent year-on-year after a similar gain in December. The core PCE is the Fed’s preferred inflation measure.

Prices for U.S. Treasuries fell, with the yield on the interest-rate sensitive 2-year note <US2YT=RR> rising to its highest level since August 2009. Fed funds futures were pricing in a 65 percent chance of an interest rate hike at the Fed’s March 14-15 policy meeting.

The U.S. central bank has forecast three rate increases this year. The Fed hiked its overnight interest rate last December by 25 basis points to a range of 0.50 percent to 0.75 percent.

The dollar rose against a basket of currencies, while U.S. stock index futures pared gains slightly.

REAL SPENDING FALLS

Rising price pressures, however, suggest that consumer spending will probably not provide a big boost to gross domestic product in the first quarter. When adjusted for inflation, consumer spending fell 0.3 percent in January, the first drop since August and the biggest in three years. Real consumer spending increased 0.3 percent in December.

Consumer spending increased at a 3.0 percent annualized rate in the fourth quarter, helping to blunt some of the impact on the economy from a wider trade deficit. The economy grew at a 1.9 percent rate in the fourth quarter.

Consumer spending in January was held back by a 0.3 percent drop in purchases of long-lasting manufactured goods such as automobiles. Spending on services was unchanged.

Personal income rose 0.4 percent in January after gaining 0.3 percent in December. Wages and salaries rose 0.4 percent.

Income at the disposal of households after accounting for inflation and taxes, fell 0.2 percent, the first decline since October 2013. Savings increased to $795.7 billion in January from $779.5 billion in December

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

U.S. seeks end to U.N. rights council’s ‘obsession’ with Israel

Israeli policemen remove a pro-settlement activist during an operation by Israeli forces to evict residents from several homes in the Israeli settlement of Ofra, in the occupied West Bank, February 28, 2017. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

By Stephanie Nebehay

GENEVA (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration is reviewing its participation in the U.N. Human Rights Council, seeking reform of its agenda and an end to its “obsession with Israel”, a senior U.S. official said on Wednesday.

Washington has long argued that the Geneva forum unfairly focuses on Israel’s alleged violations of human rights, including war crimes against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The United States “remains deeply troubled by the Council’s consistent unfair and unbalanced focus on one democratic country, Israel”, Erin Barclay, U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state, told the U.N. Human Rights Council.

Barclay said that no other nation had a whole agenda item devoted to it and that “this obsession with Israel” threatened the council’s credibility.

Barclay questioned whether focusing on Israel was a sensible priority, adding that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government was bombing hospitals while North Korea and Iran deny millions of their people of freedoms of religion, peaceful assembly and expression.

“In order for this Council to have any credibility, let alone success, it must move away from its unbalanced and unproductive positions,” Barclay said.

“As we consider our future engagements, my government will be considering the Council’s actions with an eye toward reform to more fully achieve the Council’s mission to protect and promote human rights.”

The United States is currently an elected member of the 47-state Geneva forum where its three-year term ends in 2019.

There was no immediate reaction from the U.N. human rights office, but on Tuesday Council spokesman Rolando Gomez told a briefing: “The US been a very active and constructive partner in the Council for many years, spearheading a number of important initiatives, such as DPRK (North Korea), Iran, Syria, LGBT rights … and many issues that are certainly on the agenda today.”

He said that any country that wished to revoke its membership of the council would have to go through the General Assembly in New York.

(Additional reporting by Tom Miles; editing by Richard Lough)

South Korea, U.S. begin large-scale annual drills amid North Korea tension

South Korean policemen and soldiers stand guard at a golf course owned by Lotte, where the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system will be deployed, in Seongju, South Korea, March 1, 2017. Kim Joon-beom/Yonhap via REUTERS

SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean and U.S. troops began large-scale joint military exercise on Wednesday conducted annually to test their defense readiness against the threat from North Korea, which routinely characterizes the drills as preparation for war against it.

The exercise, called Foal Eagle, comes amid heightened tension following the latest test launch of a ballistic missile by the North on Feb. 12 and in the past prompted threats by Pyongyang to launch military action in retaliation.

South Korea’s Defense Ministry and the U.S. military based in the South confirmed the start of the drills on Wednesday that will continue until the end of April but did not immediately provide further details.

The exercise last year involved about 17,000 American troops and more than 300,000 South Koreans.

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis spoke with South Korean Defense Minister Han Min-Koo early on Wednesday by telephone and said the United States remains steadfast in its commitment to the defense of its ally.

Mattis welcomed a deal signed by South Korea with the Lotte Group conglomerate this week to secure the land to station the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system in the South, the two countries said.

South Korea has said it and the United States aim to make the system, which the two countries decided last year to deploy in response to the North Korean missile threat, operational by the end of the year.

Han said in the phone call with Mattis that this year’s joint drills will be conducted at a similar scale as last year’s, which the South’s Defense Ministry had called the “largest-ever” exercises by the allies.

North Korea’s official KCNA news agency said earlier on Wednesday its leader Kim Jong Un inspected the headquarters of a major military unit and issued guidance on increasing combat readiness.

(Reporting by Jack Kim and Ju-min Park in Seoul and Phil Stewart in Washington; Editing by Michael Perry)

U.S. attorney general pushes to stop suing local police

A bitterly divided Senate confirmed Republican Senator Jeff Sessions as the next attorney general of the United States. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

By Julia Edwards Ainsley

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said on Tuesday that the federal government should stop spending money to sue local police departments, signaling a sharp departure from the previous administration’s policy toward law enforcement exhibiting patterns of racism or excessive force.

In his speech to the National Association of Attorneys General in Washington, Sessions said the Justice Department should instead use its resources to help police figure out the best way to fight crime.

He announced the formation of a Justice Department task force to look at deficiencies in current practices to combat crime and propose new legislation.

The Justice Department is still weighing whether it should impose reforms on the Chicago Police Department, which was the subject of a critical report by the Obama administration.

Sessions said violent crime had risen since 2014, although it is down almost half since the early 1990s.

Federal Bureau of Investigation crime statistics for 2015, the latest year for which complete data is available, showed violent crimes increased 3.9 percent from 2014, while property crimes declined by 2.6 percent. The rise in violent crime came after two years of decreases, not decades of declines as Sessions suggested.

The Obama administration began several investigations into police departments that it said were unfairly targeting minorities and using excessive force. Videos of such incidents shared online have sparked protests in cities from Baltimore to Ferguson, Missouri.

The address to the attorneys general, who are responsible for prosecuting state-level crimes, signaled that the Trump administration would commit itself to supporting police rather than questioning their practices.

“To confront the challenge of rising crime, we must rely heavily on local law enforcement to lead the way,” Sessions said in prepared remarks. “And they must know they have our steadfast support.”

(Reporting by Julia Edwards Ainsley; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)

Russia looks for positive signals in Trump’s speech to Congress

Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov sits near the Syrian national flag as he addresses a news conference in Damascus in this file photo dated June 28, 2014. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s deputy foreign minister said on Tuesdays that relations with the United States were at their lowest ebb since the Cold War, but hoped they could improve under U.S. President Donald Trump.

Russia will analyze Trump’s debut address to Congress later on Tuesday for signs of any change in the U.S. stance, Sergei Ryabkov told parliament in Moscow.

“It will be important to analyze those signals and approaches which will be a part of Trump’s first appearance as the head of a superpower,” the RIA news agency quoted Ryabkov as saying.

“It would be desirable to believe that changes in Washington will create a window of opportunity for an improvement of a dialogue between our countries.”

In Washington, Trump’s opponents accuse him of already getting too close to Moscow. A U.S. congressional committee is investigating contacts between Trump’s election campaign and Russia to see if there were any inappropriate communications.

Relations between the two nuclear powers are strained over a number of issues, including Ukraine, the war in Syria, and relations with Iran.

Ryabkov said Russia had not discussed with Washington the sanctions imposed over the annexation of Crimea, but said it would be easier for to work with the United States on the Syria crisis if they were lifted.

“We did not discuss and we do not discuss criteria for the lifting of sanctions. Restrictions in a number of areas are of course affecting us, but no more than the damage they cause to American exports,” the Itar TASS agency quoted Ryabkov as saying.

(Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic; Editing by Polina Devitt and Robin Pomeroy)

Pentagon delivers draft plan to defeat Islamic State to White House

U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis waits to welcome Canada's Minister of National Defense Harjit Sajjan at the Pentagon in Washington, U.S., February 6, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

By Idrees Ali

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A Pentagon-led preliminary plan to defeat Islamic State was delivered to the White House on Monday and U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis was expected to brief senior administration officials, a Defense Department spokesman told reporters.

Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis told reporters that it was the framework for a broader plan and looked at Islamic State around the world, not just Iraq and Syria.

Davis said the plan would define what defeating Islamic State meant and was one that would “rapidly” defeat the militant group.

He added that Mattis would discuss the plan, which is primarily a written one with accompanying graphics, with members of the Cabinet-level Principals Committee.

The review of U.S. strategy comes at a decisive moment in the U.S.-led coalition effort against Islamic State in both Iraq and Syria, and could lead to relaxing some of the former Obama administration’s policy restrictions, like limits on troop numbers. The Trump administration has said defeating “radical Islamic terror groups” is among its top foreign policy goals.

The Baghdad-based U.S. commander on the ground, Army Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend, has said he believes U.S.-backed forces would recapture both of Islamic State’s major strongholds – the cities of Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria – within the next six months.

Iraqi forces expect a fierce battle against Islamic State to retake Mosul.

In Syria, the United States must soon decide whether to arm Syrian Kurdish YPG fighters, despite objections from NATO ally Turkey, which brands the militia group as terrorists.

The U.S. military-led review includes input from Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, as well as from the Treasury Department and the U.S. intelligence community.

Davis said that in addition to diplomacy, the plan would include a military framework that builds on capabilities and goals on the battlefield.

Experts have said the Pentagon could request additional forces, beyond the less than 6,000 American troops now deployed to both Iraq and Syria, helping the U.S. military go farther and do more in the fight.

They also said the Pentagon may focus on smaller-scale options like increasing the number of attack helicopters and air strikes as well as bringing in more artillery. The military may also seek more authority to make battlefield decisions.

(Reporting by Idrees Ali; Editing by Andrew Hay and Peter Cooney)

U.S. economy slows in the fourth-quarter; consumer spending remains bright spot

A man pushes his shopping cart down an aisle at a Home Depot store in New York, July 29, 2010. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton

By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. economic growth slowed in the fourth quarter as previously reported, with robust consumer spending offset by downward revisions to business and government investment.

Gross domestic product rose at a 1.9 percent annual rate in the final three months of 2016, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday in its second estimate for the period. That matched the estimate published last month.

Output increased at a 3.5 percent rate in the third quarter.

The economy grew 1.6 percent for all of 2016, its worst performance since 2011, after expanding 2.6 percent in 2015.

Economic data early in the first quarter has been mixed, with retail sales rising in January but homebuilding and business spending on capital goods easing.

The economy may get a boost from President Donald Trump’s proposed stimulus package of sweeping tax cuts and infrastructure spending as well as less regulations.

Trump, who pledged during last year’s election campaign to deliver 4 percent annual GDP growth, has promised a “phenomenal” tax plan that the White House said would include tax cuts for businesses and individuals.

Details on the proposal remain vague, though Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Sunday that Trump would use a policy speech to Congress on Tuesday night to preview some aspects of his tax reform plans.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected fourth-quarter GDP would be revised up to a 2.1 percent rate.

U.S. Treasury prices rose after the data, while the dollar <.DXY> dipped against a basket of currencies. U.S. stock index futures were largely unchanged.

CONSUMER SPENDING JUMPS

Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, was revised sharply higher to a 3.0 percent rate of growth in the fourth quarter. It was previously reported to have risen at a 2.5 percent rate.

That meant private domestic demand increased at a 3.0 percent rate, faster than the 2.8 percent pace reported last month.

Some of the rise in demand was met with imports, which increased at a 8.5 percent rate rather than the 8.3 percent pace reported last month. Exports declined, leaving a trade deficit that subtracted 1.70 percentage point from GDP growth as previously reported.

There was a small downward revision to inventory investment. Businesses accumulated inventories at a rate of $46.2 billion in the last quarter, instead of the previously reported $48.7 billion. Inventory investment added 0.94 percentage points to GDP growth, down from the 1.0 percentage point estimated last month.

Business investment was revised lower to reflect a more modest pace of spending on equipment, which increased at a 1.9 percent rate instead of the previously estimated 3.1 percent pace. That was still the first increase in over a year and reflected a surge in gas and oil well drilling in line with rising crude oil prices.

Spending on mining exploration, wells and shafts increased at a 23.6 percent rate instead of the previously reported 24.3 percent pace. It declined at a 30.0 percent pace in the third quarter.

Investment in nonresidential structures was revised to show it falling at a less steep 4.5 percent pace in the fourth quarter. It was previously reported to have declined at a 5.0 percent rate. Overall, business investment contributed 0.17 percentage point to GDP growth, less than the 0.30 percentage reported last month.

Spending on residential construction increased at a 9.6 percent rate, which was downwardly revised from the 10.2 percent pace reported last month. The rebound followed two straight quarterly declines.

Government spending increased at a 0.4 percent rate in the fourth quarter, rather than the previously reported 1.2 percent pace of growth. As a result, government investment made no contribution to growth. It was previously reported to have contributed 0.21 percentage point.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Paul Simao)

Trump to lay out plans for America in upcoming speech to Congress

White House aide Omarosa Manigault (center R) directs traffic as U.S. President Donald Trump (center L) welcomes the leaders of dozens of historically black colleges and universities (HBCU) in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S. February 27, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

By Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Donald Trump gets a chance to put the rocky start to his presidency behind him on Tuesday night with a speech to the U.S. Congress where he will lay out his plans for the year including a healthcare overhaul and military buildup.

The speech at 9 p.m. (0200 GMT Wednesday) in the chamber of the House of Representatives will be Trump’s biggest chance yet as president to command a large prime-time audience and describe his agenda after a first month in office characterized by missteps, internal dramas and acrimonious disputes with the news media.

The address, which Trump has been writing with aide Stephen Miller and others, will include some gestures toward unifying a country polarized by a bitterly fought election and divided in the early days of his presidency.

An average of recent polls by Real Clear Politics put his approval rating at about 44 percent, low for a new president.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer said the theme of the speech to Congress, which is controlled by Trump’s fellow Republicans, would be “the renewal of the American spirit” and that it would be grounded in how to solve the problems of everyday Americans.

“He will invite Americans of all backgrounds to come together in the service of a stronger and brighter future for our nation,” Spicer told reporters on Monday.

Trump, whose inauguration speech on Jan. 20 painted a dark picture of the United States and referred to “American carnage,” told Reuters last week in an interview that his address would be a speech of optimism.

The president faces a host of questions going into his first speech before a joint session of Congress.

Specifics of his plan to overhaul former Democratic President Barack Obama’s signature healthcare law have not been released. He has yet to describe how to pay for a sharp increase in planned spending on rebuilding U.S. roads and bridges.

His proposals to cut taxes for millions of people and corporations have not been sketched out. His strategy for renegotiating international trade deals remains unclear. He took delivery on Monday of a Pentagon proposal for fighting Islamic State militants and must decide on it in the days ahead.

He seeks a big increase in defense spending but that plan includes a demand that non-defense federal agencies cut funds to offset the cost, painful reductions likely to face opposition in Congress. Some Republicans have said the proposed 10 percent defense spending increase is not enough to meet the military’s needs.

Asked in a Fox News interview broadcast on Tuesday how he would pay for the increased spending, Trump said, “I think the money is going to come from a revved up economy.”

His executive order temporarily banning people from seven Muslim-majority nations on national security grounds stirred protests and was put on hold by federal courts. He was expected to sign a replacement order on Wednesday.

DEMOCRATIC DISPLEASURE

Tim Albrecht, a Republican strategist in Iowa, said the speech was Trump’s best opportunity to date to explain where he wants to take the country. Albrecht doubted there would be much in the way of conciliatory language.

“Despite those at home or in the audience, he’s going to put forward what he believes needs to be done just as he did in the two years he ran for president,” he said. “As with everything in Trump land, conventional wisdom is thrown out the window.”

Democratic lawmakers plan to attend the speech and give their reactions to reporters afterward, as is the custom during similar events, according to congressional aides.

But at least one Democrat – Representative Luis Gutierrez of Illinois, has said he will protest Trump’s speech by refusing to applaud or give him a standing ovation, as also is a custom at presidential speeches.

Democrats aim to show their displeasure with Trump policies by inviting an array of guests to the House visitors’ galleries to highlight their opposition to his agenda.

Democratic Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois has invited Aaima Sayed, a medical student who participates in an Obama administration program that defers deportation for youths brought to the United States illegally. Trump has not given a definitive answer on whether he will leave the program in place.

Other Democratic guests include Muslim immigrants, an advocate of programs for people with disabilities and people who want new gun control measures.

Trump’s guest list illustrates some of his favorite themes: the widows of two California police officers killed by an illegal immigrant, a young woman who benefited from a Florida school choice program and the daughter of a pharmaceutical entrepreneur who founded his company to look for a cure for her illness.

Another guest will be Maureen Scalia, wife of late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, a hero to conservatives whom Trump hopes to replace on the court with Neil Gorsuch.

House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi told reporters on Monday that if Trump’s address was anything like his inaugural speech, “it will be a very sad evening for our country.”

(Additional reporting by Richard Cowan, Ayesha Rascoe, Jeff Mason, Emily Stephenson, Doina Chiacu; Editing by Peter Cooney and Frances Kerry)

U.S. says Trump order will not undermine data transfer deals with EU

U.S. President Donald Trump walks after speaking during the Governor's Dinner in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., February 26, 2017.

By Julia Fioretti

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – An executive order signed by U.S. President Donald Trump to crack down on illegal immigration will not undermine two data transfer agreements between the United States and the EU, Washington wrote in a letter to allay European concerns.

An executive order signed by Trump on Jan. 25 aiming to toughen enforcement of U.S. immigration law rattled the European Union as it appeared to suggest Europeans would not be given the same privacy protections as U.S. citizens.

The order directs U.S. agencies to “exclude persons who are not United States citizens or lawful permanent residents from the protections of the Privacy Act regarding personally identifiable information.”

Securing equal treatment of EU citizens was key to agreeing the Umbrella Agreement which protects law enforcement data shared between the United States and the EU.

And the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield – which makes possible about $260 billion of trade in digital services – was only clinched after Washington agreed to protect the data from excessive surveillance and misuse by companies.

In the first written confirmation since the executive order stoked uncertainty over transatlantic data flows, the U.S. Department of Justice said the executive order did not affect either the Umbrella Agreement or the Privacy Shield.

“Section 14 of the Executive Order does not affect the privacy rights extended by the Judicial Redress Act to Europeans. Nor does Section 14 affect the commitments the United States has made under the DPPA (Umbrella Agreement) or the Privacy Shield,” Bruce Swartz, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, wrote to the European Commission in a letter seen by Reuters.

EU Justice Commissioner Vera Jourova, who will travel to the United States at the end of March, said she was “not worried” but remained vigilant.

The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield is used by almost 2,000 companies including Google, Facebook and Microsoft  to store data about EU citizens on U.S. servers.

Its predecessor was struck down in 2015 by the EU’s top court for allowing U.S. agents unfettered access to Europeans’ data, forcing an acceleration of difficult talks to find a replacement.

(Reporting by Julia Fioretti; Editing by Mark Potter)