{"id":55353,"date":"2018-07-09T19:18:29","date_gmt":"2018-07-09T19:18:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2018\/07\/09\/rebuild-the-us-minerals-supply-chain-before-its-too-late\/"},"modified":"2026-08-20T16:14:01","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T16:14:01","slug":"rebuild-the-us-minerals-supply-chain-before-its-too-late","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/industry\/2018\/07\/09\/rebuild-the-us-minerals-supply-chain-before-its-too-late\/","title":{"rendered":"Rebuild the US minerals supply chain before it\u2019s too late"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As the possibility of a full-blown trade war with China looms over the economy, it\u2019s important to understand the pressure points that Beijing could push to exert leverage against the U.S. And the nation\u2019s Achilles\u2019 heel<\/a> could very well be a complete dependence on China for a growing number of key minerals and metals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If tit-for-tat tariffs don\u2019t result in detente, Beijing could cripple America\u2019s industrial supply chain<\/a> by placing an embargo on minerals and metals exports, particularly rare earth minerals. It\u2019s Beijing\u2019s ace up the sleeve, and we gave it to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite an abundance of minerals reserves, America has become increasingly dependent on imports to meet demand. The U.S. Geological Survey reports that America is now 100 percent import-reliant for 21 minerals, and at least 50 percent import-reliant for another 29. Most troubling is that the U.S. is now 100 percent import-dependent for all of the 17 minerals that constitute the rare-earth minerals group. And China, which controls more than 95 percent of global rare-earth minerals production, has a monopoly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether it\u2019s cellphones, electric motors, batteries, aircraft, wind turbines or MRI machines, rare earths play an essential role. But it\u2019s not just commercial manufacturing assembly lines that are vulnerable to an embargo; it\u2019s also military hardware.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether it\u2019s the advanced electronics and control systems in F-22 and F-35 aircraft, night vision devices, guidance, targeting systems, or dozens of other critical defense technologies, they\u2019re all built with rare earth components. While the U.S. has a small strategic reserve of some of these minerals \u2014 to provide a short-term supply for our military supply chain \u2014 we have allowed ourselves to become unnervingly comfortable in China\u2019s vise.<\/p>\n\n\n\t