Economic security: perspectives from EU, Japan and US

The European Union’s economic security strategy was formulated during a period of robust transatlantic cooperation, particularly with the United States. It constituted a core component of a coordinated transatlantic response to the emerging risk of the weaponisation of economic interdependencies, stemming from China’s dominant position in several manufacturing sectors and, notably, its control over the processing of critical raw materials. Despite existing divergences between the EU and the United States regarding the role of the WTO, this convergence of strategic interests warranted the utilisation of the G7 as the primary institutional framework for coordinating responses to economic coercion and for advancing the development of shared economic security standards.

The international environment has, however, undergone a profound transformation. The Trump administration demonstrated limited commitment to coordinated action with allies on reducing strategic dependencies on China and, in several instances, resorted to coercive measures directed at the EU and its member states. Although the EU–US Trade and Technology Council and related frameworks envisage cooperation on economic security, the persistent risk of unilateral U.S. coercive action continues to constrain the transatlantic partnership in this domain.

In this off-the record workshop, we discussed economic security strategies with scholars, business and policy makers from the US, Japan and Europe. We started with a discussion of how the European economic security strategy should transform into something resembling a doctrine given the new transatlantic relation. We then explored specific implications of US tariffs for economics security as well as China's industrial policy.