The United States imagined that China would veto its export of rare earths. Has a plan B: The Pacific Fund

In the midst of the tariff war that has ended up becoming a bilateral front between the United States and China, the Asian giant He has responded blocking rare earth export. The White House seems to be seen coming and has played with one of its last buzas.

The forecast. The Trump administration has written an executive order to allow the storage of metals found in the marine bed of the Pacific Ocean, According to Financial Times. This initiative seeks to counteract China’s influence on supply chains of critical minerals, since it controls 70% of the global market.

A Great Reserve. These metals are found in the polymetallic nodules of the seabed, which contains minerals such as nickel, cobalt, copper, manganese and rare earth traces. As The British media has had accessthe US government has considered that deep water mining will guarantee a national source of these materials, so it seeks to accelerate mining requests under national legislation. Within that idea, it would include the creation of a strategic reserve of minerals to self -abuse.

It won’t be so easy. The International Marine Funds Authority (ISA) is responsible for regulating mining in international waters. In a recent meeting, still an agreement has not been reached About how to proceed in underwater mining, and many countries are asking for a moratorium on this practice due to the impact on little known marine ecosystems.

In the case of the United States They have not ratified The United Nations Convention on the Law of the 1982 Sea, the treaty that gives the ISA legal support. In other words, it is not within the entity, so the big doubt opens if you can legally grant permits to companies to operate in international waters. For their part, entities like The Metals Company have insisted that the ISA It does not have an exclusive mandatebut some legal experts have warned that acting without their guarantee is a risky movement that can put all nations against.

That ocean and not another. While the United States is in this situation, the Pacific choice has much more background and has to do with the Asian giant. China is One of the main actors in underwater mining, with exploration contracts granted by the ISA In the Clarion-Clipperton area (CCZ), a region rich in polymetic nodules. In addition, it is estimated that this underwater corridor can contain more critical minerals than many combined land reserves, which makes it a strategic objective.

Taking advantage. Recently, China It started The construction of an underwater laboratory at 2,000 meters deep in the Meriodional China Sea, reinforcing its scientific and operational position in oceanic funds. According to Financial Timeseverything responds to a broader vision: andThe Pacific as the new Front of Economic and Military Competition, where the control of deep resources can make a difference.

80% without mapping or exploring. The oceanic background It is our great unknownsso the ISA is holding these meetings to establish a mining code between all nations as soon as possible. For its part, scientists and environmental groups They have warned that ocean protection is prevailing due to the irreversible effects that could be given.

Image | Trump White House Archced and Mister Pommeroy

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