The ECR Group warns that Europe cannot remain strategically dependent on China for critical raw materials, industrial inputs and key technologies.

Speaking on behalf of the ECR in today’s debate on China’s export restrictions, Italian MEP Elena Donazzan underlined that Europe’s industrial resilience is at stake.

Donazzan stressed that China’s combination of massive production capacity, control over critical raw materials, low labour costs, unlimited state subsidies and minimal environmental rules leaves European producers at a structural disadvantage.

“China is our biggest industrial problem. With its enormous production capacity, cheap labour, unlimited subsidies and access to critical raw materials, Europe simply cannot compete on a level playing field.”

She warned that China is not only flooding the European market with cheap imports — it is turning Europe into a market for its overcapacity, especially in sectors such as textiles, components, steel, electric batteries and solar panels. This, she said, is steadily undermining Europe’s manufacturing base.

“They are invading our market and destroying Europe’s industrial capacity. If semi-processed and finished products enter without any duties, they will simply flood Europe and wipe out what remains of our manufacturing strength.”

For the ECR, the response must combine resilience and openness: diversified access to critical raw materials, deeper partnerships with reliable countries, and a regulatory framework that encourages investment in European extraction, processing and recycling. At the same time, Europe must ensure that its market remains protected from unfair competition.

Donazzan also warned that Europe must address its own self-inflicted competitive disadvantages.

“The biggest problem for Europe is often Europe itself — absurd laws and rising production costs make it harder for our industries to survive before we even compete with China.”

The ECR Group argues that securing Europe’s industrial future requires reducing dependency on a single supplier, restoring competitiveness, and defending European manufacturers from unfair practices — not drifting into protectionism, but ensuring that Europe cannot be pressured or weakened by external actors.