It’s about momentum.

Once again, the popularity of something is not what defines its status as a utility.

If I stop using Whatsapp, I now have to convince everyone I’m in contact with to also use the alternative when msging me before I can actually stop using WhatsApp.

Yes, that would be devastating, wouldn't it? "Hey, I'm not on WhatsApp anymore. If you want to reach me, please send me a text message or an email." Wow. So difficult. \s

I am confident the EU could do it. A complete transfer of ownership isn’t necessary for other countries to use exported services as public utilities. Public-private partnerships exist.

Could do it and "has a reason to do it" are very different things. There is no motivation there because WhatsApp and other, similar services, are ubiquitously available. It would be a largely pointless endeavor. Also, the EU has the same style of media freedom laws as the United States. If they ran a service, they wouldn't be able to censor the content on it. Like, legally speaking it couldn't. Hope you like a state-run platform for European Nazis....because that's what you'd get.

“American freedom of speech = Nazis get to speak” was your stance before. Now it’s "Anything but American freedom of speech = government censorship". What am I even supposed to say here?

You implied America's first amendment was a "government problem." I described what would happen if the United States got rid of it. I don't know if you need to say anything, but you might want to brush up on your reading comprehension skills.