President Donald Trump signed a memorandum Friday to formally consider using tariffs to counter the digital services taxes some countries impose on US tech giants, a step that could expand a global battle aimed at addressing imbalances in trade.

The memo called for the Office of the US Trade Representative to propose retaliatory measures, including tariffs, on countries that impose digital taxes on US tech companies such as Alphabet Inc. and Meta Platforms Inc.

The White House is seeking to dissuade foreign governments from collecting tax revenue from US tech companies that operate abroad, according to a fact sheet about the action seen by Bloomberg.

“What they’re doing to us in other countries is terrible with digital. So we’ll be announcing that,” Trump told reporters on Friday.

The Trump administration will also review whether any practices in the European Union or UK incentivize US companies to develop products that undermine free speech, according to the fact sheet. Both Trump and Vice President JD Vance have criticized European allies for regulations they say clamp down on conservative voices.

The memo does not set a timeline for enacting tariffs on countries that have approved digital services taxes.

The move addresses an issue that has long been a concern for Trump — dating back to his first stint in the White House. In 2019, the USTR initiated separate probes into the tax systems for France, Italy, Spain, India and other countries, with the US concluding at the time that the taxes were discriminatory and disproportionately hurt American firms.

Some nations have since withdrawn their digital services tax plans and instead joined a global negotiation for a minimum tax on tech companies — but those talks have stalled repeatedly.