Even if Beijing and Washington eventually find a way to paper over their differences, there’s no going back to the way things were.
Vulnerabilities have been exposed. In the commodity space, US dependency on China’s rare earth metals and China’s reliance on American farmers for vast volumes of agricultural imports are no longer tenable options.
The Pentagon’s Defence Logistics Agency is already seeking to diversify its sources of supply of rare earth metals, and has had discussions with potential suppliers in Burundi and Malawi.China itself has good relations with both of those African nations and indeed many others. Burundi has already joined the Belt and Road Initiative.
Rainbow Rare Earths Ltd (LON:RBW) is a mining company focussed on production from, and expansion of, the high grade Gakara Rare Earth Project in Burundi, East Africa. With in-situ grades in the range of 47-67% Total Rare Earth Oxide (TREO), Gakara is one of the world’s richest rare earth deposits.