China Secures Rare Earth Monopoly Amid Rising U.S. Tensions

China has significantly expanded its global economic and geopolitical influence, particularly in Latin America and Africa, surpassing the U.S. in trade, infrastructure development, and soft power, as highlighted by Juan E. Pardinas. This shift has exposed vulnerabilities in U.S. and EU dependencies on China, especially regarding critical resources like rare earth minerals essential for modern technology and defense systems. The U.S. has become heavily reliant on China for these minerals, prompting President Trump to prioritize securing domestic supply chains and investing in American mining to reduce this dependency. Historian Niall Ferguson underscores that China’s near-monopoly on rare earth elements underpins a new form of economic warfare, with Beijing’s recent export licensing moves serving as strategic leverage against the U.S. This evolving geopolitical struggle, often dubbed a new Cold War, emphasizes mineral control rather than traditional military confrontation. The EU also finds itself caught in this dynamic, grappling with its own dependence on China amid broader global tensions.