Research paper by Kanza Sohail
Abstract: This paper argues that the race for rare earth elements (REEs) has become a defining feature of contemporary great power rivalry. At the center of this contest is China’s near monopoly across the REE value chain.
While holding a majority in global mining output, Beijing’s decisive advantage lies in processing and refining because it processes over 80% of the world’s rare earth. In contrast, the United States has reserves but lacks domestic capacity, which forces it to ship raw materials to China for separation and production. This asymmetry has enabled China to convert supply chains into instruments of coercion.
Through exports and technology control measures, China has demonstrated how resource leverage can be deployed against adversaries in defense and high-tech industries. The US and its partners are now moving to break this dependency, aiming to build domestic capacities and resilient supply chains. This paper argues that this rivalry is shifting towards geopolitical control, technological supremacy, and control of foundations of advanced industries.
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Author: Kanza Sohail – MPhil scholar in Political Science at Kinnaird College for Women University, Lahore, Pakistan. Her research interests include global environmental politics, regional geopolitics, maritime politics and resource wars, with a particular focus on the Asia-Pacific region, Arctic geopolitics and the evolving dynamics of US-China rivalry.