The Director General of the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry, Mr.Marios Panagidis, participated in the two-day Informal Meeting of Competitiveness Ministers on Internal Market and Industry, which took place in Lence, on January 31 and February 1, 2022, in the framework of the French Presidency of the Council of the EU.
The meeting addressed the issue of the European Union's strategic dependence on third countries, with Ministers discussing the importance and ways of achieving strategic autonomy for the EU.
Panagides, in his intervention, stressed that the EU must pursue an open strategic autonomy, with the pandemic crisis having highlighted the EU's dependence on third countries in an emphatic way. He expressed the view that our efforts to ensure strategic autonomy must ensure that the EU economy remains open to trade and foreign investment.
Panagides also participated in a workshop on securing the flow of raw materials from third countries, during which he pointed out that the EU's first priority should be to develop strategic international partnerships to ensure a diversified and sustainable supply of critical raw materials. He also stressed the complexity of the strategic stockpiling exercise and suggested that pilot projects be set up.
(MB/SX)
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