(Bloomberg) -- The European Union is discussing ways to prioritize access to critical materials for the defense industry during times of crisis and to improve predictability in contracting to help bolster the sector.

Charles Michel, the president of the European Council, is planning use next week’s EU leaders summit to bring up concerns expressed by the defense industry, according to an EU official familiar with the plans. Those include creating a mechanism to prioritize the defense industry when competing with civilian goods if there’s a scarcity of materials and ensuring long-term contracts for defense companies.

The EU has been trying to build up its defense capabilities following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and after years of underspending by member states. The war between Israel and the militant group Hamas, as well as the possibility of Donald Trump returning to the White House, are adding urgency to the bloc’s efforts to boost its autonomy in defense.

Michel met with representatives of major defense firms on Monday. Around 10 company chiefs attended the gathering, including the CEOs of Rheinmetall AG, Airbus SE, Milrem Robotics, Nammo AS, Nexter, Naviris and the president of Saab AB. The EU’s industry chief, Thierry Breton and the chief executive of the European Defense Agency also took part in the meeting.

One of the key demands from the industry was to add predictability to defense expenditures through long-term government contracts, a move they said would improve production capacity and readiness, according to people familiar with the discussions, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. 

In addition, companies were concerned about the access to raw materials, critical minerals and other chemicals that are essential for production, the people said. They consider that there should be a mechanism in place to ensure access to these materials given the civilian sector is prioritized when there are bottlenecks. 

Access to critical materials has become a serious concern for the EU since the pandemic. In addition, officials fear that China could weaponize its dominance of some key resources. This access has become even more pressing against the backdrop of the global competition to accelerate the development of clean and digital technologies.

During the discussion, the participants also spoke about the important role that the European Investment Bank will play to boost investments in the defense industry. 

The EU’s lender is in talks to expand the definition of dual-use goods to facilitate more financing to firms, including investing in military companies that produce defensive products and funding military infrastructure that isn’t exclusively dedicated to military purposes, Bloomberg previously reported.

The participants also called for better cooperation and more synergies between governments and the companies, with adequate financing, flexibility in regulation, cutting red-tape or addressing different national standards, the people said.

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