EU Commits to ‘Buy European’ Strategy for Industrial Sovereignty

European Union leaders committed to implementing “Buy European” strategies aimed at achieving greater industrial sovereignty during their summit addressing Europe’s competitive challenges. The gathering of all 27 member states focused on protecting strategic sectors from unfair competition while pursuing regulatory reforms to boost European business competitiveness.
Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever’s characterization of an “existential crisis” facing major European economies resonated throughout the summit. Belgium, France, Germany, and the Netherlands have experienced significant factory closures and declining industrial investment. These aren’t just economic statistics but represent the destruction of communities built around manufacturing, with social and political consequences that extend far beyond GDP numbers. High energy costs following the loss of Russian gas have made energy-intensive manufacturing uneconomical in Europe, driving investment to the United States where energy prices are lower. Excessive regulation creates bureaucratic burdens that make European businesses less agile. Chinese dumping floods European markets with artificially cheap goods that undercut domestic manufacturers.
European Council President António Costa’s confirmation of “broad agreement” on European preference in strategic sectors represented a significant moment in European economic policy evolution. Defense, space, clean technology, quantum computing, artificial intelligence, and payment systems were identified as areas where European preference would apply. In each of these sectors, European technological capability or industrial capacity is considered essential to sovereignty—the ability to make independent decisions without vulnerability to economic coercion by foreign powers who might threaten to cut off access to critical technologies or products.
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s promise of an action plan by March encompasses multiple dimensions of European competitiveness. Regulatory simplification aims to reduce bureaucratic burdens without compromising important protections for workers, consumers, or the environment. The EU Inc framework would revolutionize how startups can scale across Europe by creating a unified corporate form that operates seamlessly across all member states. Capital market integration would create European alternatives to fragmented national systems that fail to mobilize savings efficiently. Energy price reductions would address cost disadvantages that have driven energy-intensive industries to relocate.
The summit’s focus on industrial sovereignty reflects a broader rethinking of European grand strategy. During the Cold War, Western Europe accepted American security guarantees and focused on economic integration. After the Cold War, European leaders believed that economic interdependence would promote peace and prosperity, making military power and industrial policy obsolete. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and weaponization of energy supplies shattered illusions that economic interdependence guarantees peace. China’s industrial policies and military buildup demonstrate that economic and military power remain intertwined. American threats to withdraw security guarantees unless Europeans spend more on defense and buy American products revealed that even close allies pursue national interests. In this new environment, European industrial sovereignty—the ability to produce critical technologies and products domestically—has become a strategic imperative.