Rare Earth Mining in Myanmar and the Strategic Autonomy of the EU
Rare Earth Mining in Myanmar and the Strategic Autonomy of the EU

Author(s): Jan Švec, Erica Michalíková
Subject(s): International relations/trade
Published by: Ústav mezinárodních vztahů
Keywords: imports; rare earth elements
Summary/Abstract: The European Union is extremely dependent on China forimports of rare earth elements (REE), which are crucial forthe green transition, digital transformation, and the defenceindustry.China’s new export restrictions on REE from October 2025highlighted the urgent need to accelerate the EU’s strategicautonomy in critical raw materials (CRM).The dependency on China is, however, complex and involvesopaque supply chains, including those of heavy REE (HREE)mined by Chinese companies in Myanmar under unregulatedconditions.This raises not only economic security concerns but also issuesof labour rights and environmental impact, which the EU hascommitted to upholding in its supply chains under recentlyadopted regulations.The EU should take strategic autonomy in CRM more seriously,and move the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA) from strategyto implementation with its own budget, plan, and governance.The EU must ensure maximum transparency in CRM supplychains to enforce environmental and labour standards.Where transparency is lacking and independent verificationis impossible, these sources should be preventively treated ascausing a high risk of forced labour or environmental harm,and excluded from EU supply chains.

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