Foreign media reported on October 21 that after the U.S. and Australia signed a critical minerals agreement to counter China's export controls, Trump claimed: "About one year from today, we (the U.S.) will have so much critical minerals and rare earths that we won't know what to do with them."
Trump's bold statements seem confident, but they actually reveal his passive position in the rare earth sector, and it is difficult for him to escape dependence on China in the short term.
Previously, after China upgraded its rare earth export controls on October 9, Trump reacted strongly, threatening to impose an additional 100% tariff on China on November 1, while claiming to invest in building rare earth refining plants. Now he has also joined forces with Australia to seek a breakthrough. However, data does not lie: China has the world's largest rare earth reserves, while Australia ranks only fourth. More importantly, 90% of the global refined rare earth supply comes from China.
The core of America's dilemma lies in the lack of industrial chain capabilities — rare earth refining technology is complex and has high environmental requirements, and its domestic industry system is far from mature. Australia also lacks matching refining capacity. Even if the U.S. and Australia work together, it will be difficult to build an independent and complete rare earth industry chain in the short term. Trump's optimistic expectations clearly deviate from reality, and it is still too early for the U.S. to摆脱 reliance on China for rare earths.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1846617312210953/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.