Key facts
- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will deliver her annual State of the EU address on Wednesday.
- The speech will outline priorities for the 27-nation EU, emphasizing solidarity on climate change, AI, and competition from China.
- Von der Leyen stated the EU's trade deficit with China, at €1 billion ($1.15 billion) a day last year, has reached a tipping point.
- She warned that Europe is suffering deindustrialisation due to the trade imbalance.
- Von der Leyen stressed the need for the EU to urgently procure and stockpile critical raw materials from China.
- A new European Corporation on critical raw materials will be established to help the bloc obtain and stockpile needed resources.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is set to deliver her annual State of the European Union address on Wednesday, outlining priorities for the bloc and emphasizing the need for solidarity in facing global challenges.
Von der Leyen is expected to call for collective action on climate change, artificial intelligence, and competition from China, arguing that no single EU member state can effectively address these issues alone. She will also highlight the importance of maintaining European independence in critical sectors such as energy, raw materials, and clean technologies.
Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney is scheduled to attend the European Parliament session and will also address the assembly. Officials indicated that while Canada cannot join the EU, the bloc seeks to foster a close partnership, leveraging shared values and potentially reducing dependence on China for raw materials.
Von der Leyen also stated that the EU will use every possible means to reduce its "unsustainable" trade deficit with China, warning that alternative measures may be taken if talks do not yield prompt results. She noted that the imbalance, with a goods trade deficit of €1 billion ($1.15 billion) a day last year, has reached a tipping point and that Europe is already suffering from deindustrialisation. The EU leaders called on the European Commission in June to produce results from dialogue with China and to ensure the bloc has all the instruments it needed to defend its interests. European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic is leading the talks and wants to achieve tangible results by October. Von der Leyen also highlighted the EU's reliance on China for many critical minerals, notably rare earths, and said the EU would establish a new European Corporation on critical raw materials to help the 27-nation bloc obtain and stockpile what it needed.