More cooperation at the european level aimed for.
The European Commission is ramping up efforts to make the EU more resilient in times of crisis. As emerged late last week, Brussels is working on a strategy to build up emergency reserves — not only for food, medicine, and fuel, but also for critical raw materials such as rare earth elements. The move comes amid mounting geopolitical tensions and growing fears of cyberattacks.
The strategy was officially presented this Wednesday. At its heart lies the creation of an EU-wide stockpiling network. By improving the exchange of information, the Commission aims to identify gaps and overlaps in current reserves and develop a blueprint for best practices.
Coordination and monitoring are expected to be handled by the new EU Critical Raw Materials Center, set to launch next year. According to internal EU-documents, the center will also manage joint raw material procurement — a process already kicked off last week with the Hydrogen Mechanism. In 2026, the Commission plans to take stock and assess how far the strategy has been implemented.
The new initiative builds on existing efforts, such as the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) and broader measures to strengthen Europe’s defense capabilities. A brief summary of the EU’s recent moves in the field of critical materials is available here.
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