Antonio Calcara Professor at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and the head of the Geopolitics and Technology programme at the Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy (CSDS) Antonio Calcara is a professor at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and the head of the Geopolitics and Technology programme at the Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy (CSDS). He holds a PhD in Political Science from LUISS University in Rome and has previously held academic positions at the University of Antwerp, LUISS University, and Sciences Po Paris. He has received research funding from the European Research Council, the Research Foundation – Flanders, and the European Commission. His research lies at the intersection of security studies, international political economy, management, and innovation. His work has been published in International Security, Security Studies, Review of International Political Economy, Contemporary Security Policy, West European Politics, International Studies Review, Governance, Journal of European Integration, and European Security. He is the author of European Defence Decision-Making: Dilemmas of Collaborative Arms Procurement (Routledge).PublicationsPolicy PaperDecember 2025Autonomy or Indispensability? Identifying the EU’s Semiconductor LodestarEurope’s semiconductor supply chains face rising geopolitical risks, from Chinese pressure to U.S. export threats and East Asian conflict scenarios. This policy paper argues Europe must choose between autonomy and indispensability. Full autonomy is unrealistic; pure dependence is dangerous. The authors conclude that Europe’s best path is “Allied Autonomy, European Indispensability”: securing strategic choke points, embedding them in trusted partnerships, and strengthening resilience through targeted policy actions.