One of the most shocking instances of malfeasance in modern American history is our allowing ourselves to become dependent on Communist China for the minerals we need to operate our economy and provide for the national defense. You can read about that issue here. Our dependence on China for critical minerals represents, in my opinion, the number one threat both to our national security and to our economic future.
Happily, the Trump administration understands the danger and is moving rapidly to secure non-Chinese sources of minerals. Most recently, the administration has entered into an agreement with Australia to take advantage of that country’s vast supplies of rare earths:
U.S. President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Oct. 20 signed a rare earths agreement at the White House, outlining plans for both countries to jointly invest more than $3 billion in critical minerals projects over the next six months.
The White House announced that recoverable resources from these projects are valued at an estimated $53 billion, as both countries work to counter China’s global dominance in the sector.
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“We’ve been working on that for quite a while,” Trump said, referring to the rare-earth deal, as he hosted Albanese and his delegation in the Cabinet Room. “In about a year from now, we’ll have so much critical mineral and rare earths, and you won’t know what to do with them.”
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As part of the rare earths deal, the Department of War will invest in the construction of a 100 metric ton-per-year advanced gallium refinery in Western Australia.The deal comes as the Chinese regime has weaponized global supply chains in recent weeks by significantly expanding its export controls on rare earths and minerals.
More information on the agreement at the link. Along with mineral development, the administration is proceeding with a sale of nuclear submarines to Australia. The Australians are acutely aware of the security threat from China, and it is obviously in our interest to cooperate with them on defense matters.
Australian Prime Minister Albanese has postured in his own country as an anti-Trump politician. But when it comes to business and to national defense, the anti-Trump rhetoric doesn’t stand in the way.
