When it comes to being supplied with raw materials, Europe faces a number of challenges. These include the diversification of European supply chains, the implementation of effective sustainability standards, and the reduction of strategic dependencies on China. What will European-Chinese raw...

The European Union (EU) is aiming to strengthen its cooperation with like-minded countries to secure its supply of so-called critical raw materials. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen considers Canada a "perfect match" - a resource-rich and reliable partner that shares the EU's...

A succession of disruptions to world trade have put the reorganisation of inter­national supply chains high on the political agenda. The difficulties began with the trade war between the United States and China, deepened with the Covid-19 pan­demic and culminated in the sanctions and...

The Covid-19 pandemic and Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine have posed major challenges - in different ways - to Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries as well as to the European Union (EU). At the same time, these international crises have revealed how little resilience there is...

The traditional image of Latin America as a troubled region seems to continue even after the Covid-19 crisis, this time in the wake of the war in Ukraine and the sanctions imposed by the West. Inflationary pressures, budget deficits and the danger that broad sections of the population will slip...

Europe is committed to revitalising its relations with Latin America and the Caribbean. This is evidenced by the numerous high-level visits from Germany and the EU to Latin American countries since the beginning of the year. In early June, the European Commission presented a "new agenda" for...

The summit in Brussels on 17-18 July will mark the end of a long eight-year hiatus in bi‑regional meetings between the European Union (EU) and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC). Between 1999 and 2015, conferences were held every two or three years. Since the last...

Despite concerted political efforts to isolate the Colombian peace process from Venezuela's internal unrest, the signs suggest coalescence and tectonic strife in the region. There are justified concerns that the increasingly interconnected constellation of precarious peace in Colombia and...

On 5 November 2020 Mexico ratified the socalled Escazú Agreement, a treaty between Latin American and Caribbean states on establishing regional transparency and environment standards, as the eleventh country to do so. The prescribed quorum of ratifications has thus been attained, and the...

On 3 March, the Federal Cabinet adopted an act on corporate due diligence in supply chains. This represents an important step towards German businesses assuming full and proper responsibility for the supply chains associated with their goods and services. The move puts Germany in a group of...