The European Commission has launched a new project to provide European industry with alternative sources of raw materials to Chinese supplies.
The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, at the Berlin Global Dialogue conference in Berlin announced the launch of an initiative to reduce the European Union's dependence on supplies of vital raw materials from China, reported. The new project called RESourceEU is similar to the REPowerEU program, which aims to help the EU escape its dependence on Russian gas.
“The objective is to ensure access to alternative sources of critical raw materials for our European industry in the short, medium and long term,” Von der Leyen emphasized. According to her, as part of the initiative, it is expected to expand raw material supply and processing partnerships with Australia, Kazakhstan, Canada, Uzbekistan, Ukraine and Chile.
She also announced that the focus will be on joint procurement, stockpiling and stimulating investments in strategic projects for the production and processing of raw materials in EU countries.
At the EU summit, French President Emmanuel Macron said that as China imposed restrictions on the supply of rare earth metals, this “threatens European companies' access to vital raw materials and therefore requires a decisive response”.