Trump Sets 180 Days to Fight China's Control of Critical Minerals

JAKARTA - US President Donald Trump has told allies and trading partners he will use national security powers to limit China's dominance of critical minerals with a 180-day negotiating deadline.

Through the proclamation signed on Wednesday (14/1), Trump warned suppliers to secure diversified US supply chains or face new trade barriers, including tariffs.

The US president also stated that the US' dependence on important minerals processed abroad is a threat to the superpower's national security.

The negotiators have exactly 180 days, or until July 13, 2026, to reach a legally binding or enforceable agreement.

To adjust imports of critical minerals that have been processed and their derivatives, Trump instructed Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to negotiate new agreements or expand existing agreements.

The steps include increasing processing capacity in allied countries, obtaining offtake agreements to guarantee US access, investing in non-Chinese facilities, and using trade stabilization instruments such as a price floor to address price fluctuations and volatility.

"Mineral mining in the country does not guarantee the national security of the United States if the United States remains dependent on foreign countries for the processing of these minerals," the proclamation reads.

The proclamation states that the president has the authority to bypass additional reviews and implement "improvement" measures, such as high tariffs, quotas, or mandatory "minimum import prices", if no agreement is reached by the deadline.

China has considerable influence over commodities such as rare earth elements, graphite, and gallium, as it controls more than 60 percent of the world's rare earth mining and 90 percent of its processing capacity, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

The proclamation also states that by 2024, the US is completely dependent on net imports for 12 critical minerals, and has a net import dependence of 50 percent or more for another 29 critical minerals.