The European Union has unveiled sweeping plans to slash its reliance on China and reclaim control over critical sectors – from chemicals to pharmaceuticals and biotech – as it steps up its de-risking plans.
On Wednesday the bloc unveiled three separate proposals – an action plan for the chemicals industry, a medical countermeasures strategy and a stockpiling strategy – designed to make it more self-reliant in the face of growing concerns about the weaponisation of crucial supply chains.
Unlike the other two, the stockpiling plan does not name China directly, but all three are aimed at reducing reliance on Chinese supply chains through tighter trade defences, reshoring, and diversification.
They reflect a broader EU agenda to de-risk from China economically, treating resilience and industrial policy as tools of geopolitical alignment.
“These realities do present a real challenge for Europe to confront. And we have started to address these challenges – whether by de-risking our economy and industry, using our new toolbox of trade defence measures, or diversifying our supply chains in sectors where China holds dependencies, if not outright monopolies,” she told the European Parliament.
