Eye on China, Quad to ramp up critical minerals cooperation

Framework on “Securing of Supply in the Mining and Processing of Critical Minerals and Rare Earths” was signed by external affairs minister S Jaishankar and US secretary of state Marco Rubio to deepen bilateral cooperation across the critical minerals supply chain, from mining and processing to recycling and related investments, the external affairs ministry said.

The framework will allow India and the US to become part of international efforts to “protect sensitive supply chains from coercive market practices” and reduce collective vulnerability to single-source monopolies, the US embassy said. It will also ensure that foundational elements needed for advanced technology and energy are “available within trusted networks”.

The move comes months after high technology industries in India and the US were hit by China’s curbs last year on the export of critical minerals.