Reports on the EU economic future look gloomier than ever, especially when it comes to Germany. Deindustrialization is high on the agenda. A sharp rise in energy prices initially triggered by failed energy policies and later amplified by the war in Ukraine has led to a massive migration of industrial production abroad.

Alarming messages also come from manufacturers. Some claim that businesses in the EU and, particularly, in Germany are under enormous stress and even expect some sort of ‘industrial exodus’. Indeed, the United States and China are increasingly considered by German manufacturers as a new destination to move to because energy prices and taxes there are low compared to Germany and the European Union in general.

Besides, economic policies in the EU and its members are rather complicated, not to say enigmatic. Politicians respond to current challenges with regulations ranging from taxonomies to supply chain laws to decarbonization constraints to war sanctions. Bureaucratic requirements are often impossible for companies to comply with. This hinders business instead of encouraging innovation and investment.

The danger of deindustrialization is clear and present in the EU. The tricky thing about this phenomenon is that it happens generally unnoticed, while some EU ideological circles even laud it as a positive impact of the Green Deal.

The reluctance to recognize or attempts to negate this reality will result in increasing poverty, social and political strain, and, ultimately, growing unrest inside countries. Eventually, they will change the political topography of the European Union towards exit-oriented political parties and, ultimately, destroy the Union. From this perspective, it is crucial to address the issues of the current deindustrialization in the European Union with clarity, foresight, and ideological neutrality. The future of the whole continent is at stake.

The report can be found at the following link – http://newstratcon.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Deindustrialization-of-the-EU.pdf

Dr. Andrea Galli
President
New Strategic Concept
https://newstratcon.org