From the COVID-19-pandemic, to the war in the Ukraine, to the great dependence on suppliers from geographically distant countries such as China, global supply chains have come under increasing pressure to keep up with the demand for rare resources, while still supplying bare necessities to countries and people in need. This roundtable hosted by the Institute for a Greater Europe (IGE, the third we have the privilege to host, will explore the European Union’s (EU) attempts to ensure supply chain security in the face of such global challenges as means of increasing its interconnectivity with developing countries and, thus, safeguarding Europe’s position as an international superpower. In particular, in the global market, supply chains are no longer confined to European borders. Yet, on the subject of supply chain security, experts, analysts and policymakers have offered a range of solutions to protect global supply chains against these crises. This roundtable will thus seek to better understand the battle lines that have been drawn in developing responses to global supply chain crises. Topics discussed will range from the EU’s bespoke Single Market Emergency Instrument (SMEI), intended to protect the market for essential goods and services in case of emergency, to the EU’s Global Gateway response to the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This roundtable will thus explore varying perspectives from academia on the EU’s present capability to strengthen the link with developing countries, and whether this connectivity could provide a panacea for future supply chain crises. In so doing, the panel will explore material ways in which the EU can work together with its partners to ensure supply chain security moving forward. It will also examine the risks of greater trade interconnectivity, how it can expose European trade to a new array of international crises and its potential to be weaponised in economic conflicts.

Speakers will be confirmed as senior academics in the field of trade and interconnectivity.