The European Commission ruled Tuesday that Apple owes more than 13 billion euros, or about $14.5 billion, in back taxes because Ireland granted unfair and illegal tax breaks to the tech giant — a charge the company’s CEOTim Cook denied in an open letter.
“Apple follows the law, and we pay all the taxes we owe,” Cook said in the letter. He added that the commission’s antitrust regulator has gone too far in suggesting that Apple has unfairly avoided nearly all corporate taxes for the last 10 years. The charge may strain transatlantic relations.
