Europe Wakes Up: How Merz, von der Leyen, Starmer, and Macron Are Grasping the New Moment

This article reads the Munich speeches by Chancellor Merz, President von der Leyen, Prime Minister Starmer and President Macron as a single European message on power, industry and security. It shows how all four now treat raw materials, technologies and supply chains as instruments of power, how they link European independence to industrial capacity and defence, and what this emerging doctrine means for critical minerals, social legitimacy and Europe’s role between Washington, Beijing and the Global South.