Posted on 04/17/2025 10:05:57 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
As China imposes export controls on rare earth elements, the U.S. would be unable to fill a potential shortfall, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies — and this could threaten Washington’s military capabilities.
Amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s escalating tariffs on China, Beijing earlier this month imposed export restrictions on seven rare earth elements and magnets used in defense, energy and automotive technologies.
The new restrictions — which encompass the medium and heavy rare earth elements samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium and yttrium — will require Chinese companies to secure special licenses to export the resources.
Though it remains to be seen exactly how China will implement this policy, the CSIS report, published Monday, warns that it will likely result in a pause in exports as Beijing establishes the licensing system, and cause disruptions in supply to some U.S. firms.
The New York Times reported earlier this week that a pause in China’s rare earth element exports was already occurring.
As China effectively holds a monopoly over the supply of global heavy rare earths processing, such restrictions pose a serious threat to the U.S., particularly its defense technology sector.
“The United States is particularly vulnerable for these supply chains,” CSIS warned, emphasizing that rare earths are crucial for a range of advanced defense technologies and are used in types of fighter jets, submarines, missiles, radar systems and drones.
Along with the export controls, Beijing has placed 16 U.S. entities — all but one in the defense and aerospace industries — on its export control list. Placement on the list prevents companies from receiving “dual-use goods,” including the aforementioned rare earth elements.
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
“There is no heavy rare earths separation happening in the United States at present,” CSIS said, though it noted the development of these capabilities is underway.
For example, the Department of Defense set a goal to develop a complete rare earth element supply chain that can meet all U.S. defense needs by 2027 in its 2024 National Defense Industrial Strategy.
Let China eat it’s rare earth elements
Fork in the road. Buy minerals from somebody planning to conquer and kill you, or find another source.
Tough choice.
Oh. . . wait
... but Zelensky... Ukraine...
...pipeline...
“The United States is particularly vulnerable for these supply chains,”
Why yes, brought to you by the uniparty for two generations.
China’s been going around the world the last 20 years sucking up rights to rare earth elements. Our people pretended it wasn’t happening. In Africa they would make loans for projects and then expect these countries to pay them back (unlike us who tend to forgive everything if our corrupt politicians are paid for ‘speeches’)
If we think it’s bad right now - it’ll be a million times worse in 6 years - - if/when we’re at war with them.
If only we had leadership forward thinking enough to cozy up to a place that has abundance of these minerals.... say Greenland for example.
Forgot to add that scumbag Clinton who brought the Chicoms into the WTO.
RE: Let China eat it’s rare earth elements
In the meantime, how will we supply our defense equipment?
Better to confront that issue now while we are not yet in a shooting war.
USA should immediately search for sources within the US and other countries. Could China control the US through rare earths, chips and other items?
Wouldn’t it be better to make sure that our rare earth mines are up and running before doing this?
RE: USA should immediately search for sources within the US and other countries.
The only problem with that is we have tariffs on over a hundred countries including those that could provide alternative sources.
CNBC -a rat propaganda op masquerading as a financial network. Moving on.
And don’t forget the lefty enviroweenies that brought all the lawsuits to disallow the nation to defend itself.
We have Rare Earth mines in the US, many were shut down by the environmentalists
It’s not inability. It’s hostility. The trace mineral deposits we have were carefully sequestered by “environmental” set-asides, with investors in foreign deposits involved.
And we could stop coal exports to China. We could stop all mineral shipments to China.
They would fall apart much more quickly than the US.
These are scare stories promoted by people who literally do not know what they are talking about.
Maybe. The job of a think tank are similar to war games. Take an extreme stance on a possible problem to push to make things better. Strategic hypercritical, my way of putting it. Take it with a pinch of salt. Doesn’t mean it isn’t a problem, it means it isn’t necessarily doom and gloom.
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