Critical minerals have emerged as a key measure of India–EU economic security cooperation, connecting the energy transition and advanced technologies with the resilience of industrial supply chains. This commentary examines how India’s National Critical Mineral Mission and the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act lay the groundwork for cooperation in mineral sourcing, processing, research, and recycling. It assesses the opportunities created by the 2026 strategic framework, as well as the financing, technological, and implementation constraints that may limit progress. This is the second commentary in the series, “India and the European Union Building Strategic Resilience”. Building on the first paper’s (Swapnil Kumari & Abhijit Poddar, “India and the European Union: Building resilient interdependence through technology cooperation,” SSPC Issue Brief, October 28, 2026) framework of resilient interdependence, this paper explores how cooperation can reduce specific mineral dependencies and strengthen industrial capabilities.

 

 

Citation: S. Kumari, R. Ranjan and A. Poddar,  “India and the European Union: Critical Minerals and the Test of Economic Security,” SSPC Issue Brief, November 10, 2026. (PDF)

 

• Tags:
• India, EU, Minerals, Energy, Economy