US President Donald Trump has invoked emergency powers to expand domestic production of critical minerals as he tries to reduce US reliance on imports from countries like China.
The executive order, which uses cold war era legislation, instructs government agencies, including the defence department, to prioritise mining projects as well as providing technical and financial support to boost critical mineral production.
It comes as a trade war escalates with China, which has overwhelming control over the supply chain of some critical minerals.
Last year, Beijing banned the sale of some critical minerals to the US, forcing American firms to look for other sources of the vital materials.
“Our national and economic security are now acutely threatened by our reliance upon hostile foreign powers’ mineral production,” the executive order said.
“It is imperative for our national security that the United States take immediate action to facilitate domestic mineral production to the maximum possible extent.”
The order also calls for the speeding up of permits for mining and processing projects as well as instructing the US Department of the Interior to prioritise mineral production on federal land.
Despite having some critical mineral deposits, the US relies heavily on other countries for its supplies.
Trump’s tariffs on a wide range of imports have sparked trade tensions with some of its main suppliers like China and Canada.
Critical minerals are vital to the production of key technologies ranging from batteries to advanced weapons systems.
Trump has also been eager to gain access to Ukraine’s critical minerals.
He said on Thursday that a deal will be signed “very shortly”.
“We’re also signing agreements in various locations to unlock rare earths and minerals and lots of other things all over the world, but in particular Ukraine”.
Aside from Ukraine, the US is negotiating a potential deal with the Democratic Republic of Congo over its mineral resources.
The US President Trump has also talked about taking over the semi-autonomous Danish territory of Greenland, which is rich on rare earths.
