Among the many geostrategic issues, that of semiconductors is particularly sensitive.
Alicia García-Herrero and Niclas Poitiers wrote an analysis for Bruegel (Europe’s promised semiconductor subsidies need to be better targeted). The topic is Europe and, in particular, the European Chips Act proposed by the European Commission in February 2022.
Amidst the American and Chinese giants trying to ‘protect’ themselves in semiconductor production and research, Garcia-Herrero and Poitiers point out the weaknesses of the European strategy. They write: But the European Chips Act should also be designed to strengthen the EU’s position in semiconductor research and development, and to improve market conditions for new entrants and incumbents alike, facilitating a greater role for Europe in the global chip industry.
Semiconductors are one of the faces of the great ongoing recomposition of power relations at the international level. The reconfiguration of supply chains is open and evolving: in the current de-generative megacrisis, within a war on Europe’s doorstep, we need more shared strategy on critical materials, decisive for the economy and security.
