The US Department of Commerce proposes a solution to obtain minerals essential to the army

A report by the US Department of Commerce recommends that the government strengthen relations with foreign companies that supply minerals essential for military development.

The report was released Tuesday amid a trade war between the United States and China.

"The United States is heavily dependent on critical imports of minerals. If China or Russia stopped exporting their products to the United States and its allies for a long time, following the Chinese ban on rare earths of 2010, a break in Prolonged supply could cause major shocks in major supply chains for US and foreign minerals. .

The report also notes that the United States is dependent on the import of 31 of the 35 minerals designated as critical by the Department of the Interior. In addition, the United States relies entirely on imports of 14 of these minerals.

The report also indicates that the country's imports of "essential mineral products" exceed 50% of its annual consumption. These rare earth minerals are often used in the production of airplanes, computers and GPS systems.

Last year, China produced 78 percent of rare earth minerals worldwide, according to Bank of America researchers Merrill Lynch.

"These critical minerals are often overlooked but modern life without them would be impossible," Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said in a press release. "With the recommendations detailed in this report, the federal government will take unprecedented steps to ensure that the United States is not deprived of these essential minerals."

According to the report, a solution to this problem is to strengthen international trade and cooperation in rare earth minerals.

However, in April, the Government Accountability Office found that the United States depended on China for several key minerals. And China noted that it could isolate the United States from some rare earth minerals if the trade war continued.

The Department of Commerce's report proposes a continued expansion of rare earth mineral trade with Canada, Australia, the European Union, Japan and South Korea. This does not include China in particular.

The report, however, mentions China as an area in which US production companies have resettled and has called for more investment in the National Defense stockpile program.

The NDS program, which would provide critical materials to support industrial investments to meet the needs of civilians in an emergency, is not financially sustainable, according to the report.

The report also recommends that the United States expand its public-private partnerships to stimulate industry investment, and that the country focus on increasing domestic production of essential minerals to end its production. dependence on imports.