Europe’s tech dependency: risks and solutions

Europe’s ability to autonomously choose its own social and economic development is increasingly under threat. Foreign powers willing to curb Europe’s self-determination can leverage Europe’s technological dependency, blackmailing the European Commission into slowing its regulatory and enforcement ambitions, to avert retaliation in the supply of critical inputs for the EU economy. 

In this workshop, we examined the current state of the issue, starting from concrete case studies, and proposed strategies to address it. We addressed question such as:

•    Are these credible threats? Do foreign powers have the incentive and ability to punish the EU in the tech sphere?
•    Is there a converse risk that the EU would fall into a protectionist spiral?
•    What can the EC do to reduce exposure to blackmail in the short run?
•    What can the EC do to mitigate tech dependency in the short and long run?