【By Guancha者 Net, Liu Chenghui】

China implements rare earth control in accordance with international practices. Even if the approval process is accelerated, some Western countries still complain bitterly. However, Serbia, which maintains a good relationship with China, has "confidence" and has become a resort for European car manufacturers.

According to Bloomberg, Serbian President Vučić revealed on June 29 that China has promised to accelerate the export of key minerals for electric vehicle production to Serbia, which will benefit carmakers such as Stellantis that have set up factories in Serbia.

Vučić told reporters in Belgrade that Stellantis faced increasingly serious difficulties in obtaining key raw materials and sought government help. The Serbian government intervened, using its close relationship with China to coordinate, and China pledged to support the "acceleration" of the approval process.

Vučić said that Stellantis produces models such as the Fiat Grande Panda and Citroen C3 in Serbia. When the company could not obtain necessary materials at normal prices, it requested the Serbian government to communicate with Chinese authorities.

Vučić showed the letter from the Chinese side and said that China had "asked relevant agencies to maintain close communication with Serbia and expedite the completion" of the relevant export licensing procedures.

Vučić also emphasized that China told him that any export restrictions were not "targeting friendly countries like Serbia."

However, he did not specify whether these materials would only be used for Stellantis' factories in Serbia or also allocated to car manufacturers' factories elsewhere.

In July 2024, Vučić attended the launch ceremony of a new production line for Fiat cars. Serbian government website

Vučić said that in 2012, when Fiat was still operating independently, it began producing cars at the Kragujevac factory in Serbia, playing a crucial role in the country's industrial output and economic growth.

Stellantis Group is the fourth-largest automobile manufacturer in the world, formed by the merger of the French Peugeot Citroën Group (PSA) and the Italian-American Fiat Chrysler Group (FCA) in January 2021, with its headquarters in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

The report also mentioned that China has strengthened export controls on certain rare earth elements and raw materials widely used in manufacturing, putting pressure on global supply chains. In fact, China has repeatedly emphasized that rare earth-related items have dual-use properties, and their export control is in line with international practices.

At the beginning of June, the European Automotive Suppliers Association (CLEPA) expressed concerns that among hundreds of license applications submitted to China since April, only about a quarter were approved, and several European parts factories and production lines had been forced to shut down. If no solution is found, more production lines are expected to stop within three to four weeks.

Reuters reported on the 27th that Nils Poel, the head of market affairs at CLEPA, confirmed that European suppliers had obtained enough licenses to avoid a large-scale production disruption predicted earlier this month.

Poel told Reuters that the speed of Chinese license issuance was "accelerating," increasing from 25% to 60%, and there are still hundreds of licenses pending approval.

Even so, some U.S. and Western companies are "getting greedy," still complaining about the so-called "rare earth shortage," continuously hyping the so-called "weaponization of rare earths," and criticizing China's rare earth export licensing system. They complain that the magnets they receive are barely sufficient, some applications are rejected, and future supply conditions are unpredictable.

On June 26, He Yadong, spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, stated that China has always attached great importance to maintaining the stability and security of the global supply chain. It is accelerating the review of rare earth-related export license applications in accordance with laws and regulations, has approved a certain number of compliant applications, and will continue to strengthen the approval of compliant applications. China is willing to further enhance communication and dialogue on export controls with relevant countries and actively promote convenient and compliant trade.

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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7521586015145902592/

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