US And EU Sign Memorandum Of Understanding On Critical Minerals

WASHINGTON, April 25 (Bernama-dpa) -- The United States and the European Union plan to work together to secure a more independent supply of rare earths and other critical minerals, reported German news agency (dpa).

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic agreed on Friday in Washington to a strategic partnership on critical minerals, which includes cooperation on the extraction, processing and recycling of critical minerals.

"The over concentration of these resources, the fact that they're dominated by one or two places, is an unacceptable risk," said Rubio.

"We need diversity in our supply chains, diversity in the places we get critical minerals," he said.

Sefcovic said that the "real test will be the execution of this project."

Through their efforts to establish a new trade alliance for critical raw materials, Brussels and Washington aim to reduce their dependence on Beijing.

The processing of metals known as rare earths is largely controlled by China.

These metals are essential for the electronics industry and the manufacture of products like electric cars and magnets. Raw materials considered to be of critical importance include lithium and cobalt.

US Vice President JD Vance said in early February that the trade alliance should use measures such as tariffs and price floors to prevent Beijing from flooding the markets with raw materials at dumping prices and thus undercutting competitors.

The agreement is intended to strengthen the US economy whilst expanding production across the entire alliance. 

--BERNAMA-dpa