Economic security

America’s critical minerals problem has gone from bad to worse

It is no secret that the United States has a critical minerals problem. As the Pentagon’s top acquisition official Ellen Lord said recently, “We have an amazing amount of dependency on China.” Lord called the findings of a forthcoming report on the defense industrial base “quite alarming,” and noted that China is America’s “sole source for rare earth minerals.”

According to the United States Geological Survey, the United States relies on Chinese imports for at least 20 minerals and has little or no capacity to mine, refine, and process its own minerals from start to finish. As a recent executive order on critical minerals makes clear, this “strategic vulnerability” poses a significant national security risk.

Although President Trump has taken great strides to address this national security threat—through executive orders and trade investigations—it’s time for Congress and the administration to take a whole-of-market approach to critical minerals and to enact policies that will spur innovation at every step in the minerals supply chain. This should start with mine permitting reform and investment in promising materials technologies and processes.

Critical minerals are the building blocks for military equipment. From minerals that are ubiquitous in the supply chain, such as copper and steel, to those that are very specialized—like rare earth elements and beryllium—America’s technological superiority hinges on maintaining reliable access to key materials. Without access to such minerals, our precision-guided missiles will not hit their targets, our aircraft and submarines will sit unfinished in depots, and our war-fighters will be left without the equipment they need to complete their missions.