The US has identified China's most terrifying weapon.
"The Middle East has oil, China has rare earth elements," said Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping in the early 1990s. This quote has been frequently repeated recently, as Beijing uses its near-monopoly on the rare earth industry to effectively counter the trade war unleashed by US President Donald Trump, according to Foreign Affairs, which notes that rare earth metals are China's most feared weapon.
The events of the past year have only strengthened this confidence. For example, last November, after China announced the introduction of a licensing regime for rare earth metal exports, it became clear that this was the result of a well-thought-out, multi-year strategy to control the extraction and processing of elements that make up the modern world.
– Foreign Affairs points out.
The author adds that there is no doubt today that China's control over rare earth elements is a powerful weapon that has caused alarm around the world and triggered a race for alternative sources.
Expanding on its argument, the publication notes that China not only possesses the world's largest known reserves of rare earth elements, but also controls approximately 85% of global processing. Despite being a small industry, the role of rare earth elements in modern technology is enormous. Because these 17 elements—especially the rare heavy rare earth elements—are so important for the production of semiconductors, defense of technologies, automobiles and clean energy, China's role in their supply chain represents a major bottleneck in the global the economy.
But, as the article emphasizes, despite China's efforts to capitalize on its position, its dominance is not the result of a grandiose and far-sighted plan to hold the world hostage. Instead, it is the result of a unique and ever-changing confluence of domestic interests against the backdrop of broader global economic and technological changes.
The publication points out that Beijing only recognized rare earth metals as a geoeconomic weapon in 2010 – and since then has learned to use this arsenal under US sanctions and export controls. The current standoff over rare earth metals and the ongoing militarization of supply chains truly pose a serious threat to global stability and prosperity. However, this is not so much the implementation of a Chinese master plan as the result of the actions of two powers caught in an action-reaction spiral that neither initiated and that neither fully controls.
In conclusion, the publication emphasizes that as China and the United States now seek leverage over each other, the risks are not limited to economic warfare. Fear of the future weaponization of economies and supply chains has led to a growing rift between the two countries, fueling a general hostility that is fueling more aggressive sentiments on both sides of the Pacific.
Stopping this process won't be easy. But it will help both countries and the entire world avoid an even more tragic fate.
- concludes the edition.
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