The EU is preparing to present a key mineral strategic cooperation plan to the United States, with the core goal of weakening China's dominant position in key minerals and seizing the opportunity window under the Trump administration's push for a new round of global resource restructuring to gain control over rule-making.

According to informed sources, the EU has prepared to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the US, aiming to develop a "Strategic Partnership Roadmap" within three months. This collaboration will focus on joint development of key minerals, supply chain security, and pricing mechanisms, attempting to establish stable raw material sources for advanced manufacturing and high-tech industries without relying on China.

Currently, both the US and the EU are highly dependent on China's low-cost, abundant resources for key minerals, which gives China significant leverage in the global supply chain. The EU's internal assessment is that if it does not form institutionalized cooperation with the US in this round of restructuring, it will be difficult to avoid the structural risks of being "strangled" by China in the future.

This EU proposal outlines various specific tools, including:

- Joint development of key mineral projects

- Establishing price support or stability mechanisms to prevent Western mining companies from being squeezed out of the market by Chinese low-price exports

- Preventing oversupply of external minerals and market manipulation

- Building a "secure supply chain corridor" between the US and the EU

A very important but easily overlooked detail is that the EU explicitly emphasized in the memorandum that both sides must respect each other's territorial integrity. This statement is generally interpreted as a direct response to Trump's recent remarks about "buying Greenland." Greenland is rich in rare earth resources, and its sovereignty belongs to the Danish EU member state, an issue that once caused intense tension in US-EU relations.

This proposal comes as the US is preparing to convene foreign ministers and senior officials from dozens of allied countries this Wednesday to promote a package of agreements aimed at reducing reliance on China's key minerals. In fact, previous US administrations have attempted similar strategies, but due to costs, coordination difficulties, and market realities, the results have been limited.

However, the background has changed this time. Last year, China imposed export restrictions on some rare earths and key minerals, although these measures were temporarily suspended under the October 2023 Sino-US agreement. However, there is now a consensus in Washington that it is necessary to quickly establish a "de-China" alternative system. One of the focuses is to promote a key mineral pricing mechanism to protect the mining and refining enterprises of the US and the EU from being overwhelmed by China's low-priced products. The EU's proposal aligns closely with the US on this point.

Notably, the US has already taken the initiative recently. Just this Monday, Trump announced the launch of a $1.2 billion key mineral strategic reserve program (Project Vault), aimed at providing a buffer for manufacturing and preventing supply disruptions. The EU also clearly mentioned in its document that "strategic reserves" are one of the viable options, indicating that the two sides' thinking is rapidly converging.

Nevertheless, there are still doubts within the EU. Some officials privately believe that it is not easy to reach a truly "binding and enforceable" agreement in the short term, especially when member states' interests are not entirely aligned. Previously, the US had tried to bypass the EU and sign bilateral agreements with individual member states, but this was strongly opposed by the European Commission, and ultimately, the EU member states authorized the European Commission to negotiate uniformly.

In summary, this EU proposal sends a clear signal: key minerals have escalated from an "industrial issue" to a "core battlefield of geopolitical and institutional competition."

Original: toutiao.com/article/1856116713973769/

Statement: The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone.