ROME, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Italy and Germany are in favour of an international agreement to control raw material prices in order to curb the influence of China, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani
Italy and Germany Collaborate on Raw Materials Security Amid China Tensions
Italy and Germany's Joint Strategy for Raw Materials
By Giuseppe Fonte
Importance of Critical Minerals
ROME, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Italy and Germany have pledged to work together to secure supply chains for raw materials vital to their economies, according to a document seen by Reuters, as Rome urges partners to counter what it sees as China's growing influence over global prices.
Legislative Actions in Italy
G7 and other major economies are discussing ways to reduce dependence on Chinese rare earths, including potentially setting a price floor and forming new partnerships to develop alternative supply sources.
Future Cooperation Plans
The document was drafted as part of an intergovernmental summit in Rome attended by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
COMMON STRATEGY
"We can't accept that China alone can decide the price of raw materials," Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said at an Italian-German business forum. "Italy and Germany want a common strategy and we hope other countries will share this approach."
The minerals are essential for defence technologies, semiconductors, renewable energy components, batteries and refining processes.
Earlier this month, China banned exports of items destined for Japan's military that have civilian and military uses, including some critical minerals.
Meloni has taken legislative steps to expand domestic extraction of such materials, including measures aimed at reopening closed or abandoned mining sites.
In the document, Italy and Germany said they would cooperate to secure supply chains "for critical raw materials that are crucial for strategic technologies and sector applications," aiming to strengthen economic security.
Rome and Berlin - the European Union's leading manufacturing economies - said ensuring access to critical minerals also offered an opportunity to strengthen cooperation within the 27-nation bloc, with transatlantic partners and with other "like-minded" countries.
Italian officials said silicon, chips, defence and aerospace had been identified as the main sectors for bilateral cooperation.
Speaking at the same event, Italian Industry Minister Adolfo Urso said Rome and Berlin would soon approve an agreement to build a low-orbit satellite network - a project that would appear to offer a European alternative to infrastructure provided by global operators such as Elon Musk's Starlink.
"We need to create European champions," he said.
(Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte and Angelo Amante. Editing by Crispian Balmer and Mark Potter)
