As a strategic partner of the United States and a core EU member country in the rare minerals domain, Romania joined the first rare minerals ministerial at the invitation of Secretary of state Marco Rubio.
The Washington ministerial and the conversations leading up to it had a clear goal to advance economic security, resilient critical mineral supply chains and global partnerships that protect our industries and jobs in the future.
At a time when Romania’s defence, tech and energy industries have a growing need of resources from global supply chains, being part in international negotiations becomes essential.
Romania is aligned with the United States risk assessment. As part of our Strategic Partnership we fully support the idea to create a global coalition to protect industries from political coercion and supply chain disruption by strengthening transatlantic resilient supply chains through market and policy instruments.
As part of the core group of five European ministers of Foreign Affairs at the ministerial, Romanian minister Oana Țoiu highlighted the fact that we can no longer fully separate economic plans from security needs in this geopolitical context. Minister Țoiu advocated for stronger EU-US ties on investments, processing and common market instruments.
“We all had a wake-up call regarding our supply chain dependencies, but it is the US invitation that accelerated the action to de-risk. Romania is a strong supporter of transatlantic ties. Advancing multilateral agreement on rare minerals is the right path. We will use our strong partnerships to further build prosperity and jobs for our citizens. Predictability for our industries and safe sustainable practices become possible only if those that have price dumping practices face a coordinated response.
We have more than 120 years of working with the US to invest together to bring natural resources into our economies, starting with energy and building further opportunities both bilaterally and in the EU – US framework.
Recognized as a country rich in resource, home of some of the largest copper deposits in Europe, with key projects in magnesium, graphite and resources for magnets, we have a national strategy aimed at increasing investments and the processing of raw materials into finite products. Our GDP has already increased 10 times in a generation, but we are aware that any future growth of our key industries (car industry, energy, tech, defence, appliances) depends on Romania being part of resilient supply chains. We are ready to build them fast” minister Țoiu mentioned in her remarks.
“Romania is emerging as a strategic player in Europe’s critical minerals supply chain. Driven by EU-wide efforts to reduce dependence on external sources, the country has taken bold steps to revive key mining operations and expand exploration activities. The Romanian government, in collaboration with the EU, has prioritized strategic investments and licensing mechanisms”, was the evaluation of the International Trade Organization of the United States of America.
In the next 30 days, a final Memorandum of Understanding, with negotiations led by the EU Commission and the State Department, will advance the development of coordinated trade policies and mechanisms, in the context of the European Critical Raw Material ACT.
Romania is ready to contribute for the defence and high-tech industry in terms of magnets, battery and energy storage, aerospace and defence, green energy transition and also sees opportunities for recycling to increase resource efficiency and sustainability and welcome future European stockpiling plans.
Critical minerals and rare earths are essential for our most advanced technologies and will only become more important as AI, robotics, batteries, and autonomous devices transform our economies.