When a press conference of the routine oval office has deteriorated Screaming On February 28, the world looked at amazement. This is, except for actual experts in Rare And other critical materials, which I understood all the time that the proposed “deal” that motivated the press conference was illogical and could not be considered a political theater except as a political theater.
The meeting was supposed to announce an agreement according to it Ukraine It would provide American companies access to the critical Minerals Deposits in exchange for tens of billions of dollars from military aid that the US government has already provided. According to Center for Strategic and International Studiesand Agreement It would create a “investment fund for reconstruction with the ownership of the United States and the common Ukraine. Ukraine will contribute 50 percent of all revenues gained from the future liquefaction of all the assets of the Ukrainian government -owned natural resources in the fund.” Ukraine has large reserves or deposits of lithium, GraphiteManjiniz, TitaniumGallium, and Nickel. However, in describing the proposed deal, Trump and another replacement were quickly released on the rare landThe United States spends for years on billions of dollars in an attempt Securing stable supplies.
It seems that the Trump administration, like the one that preceded it, is aware of the importance of these materials. In his confirmation session, Foreign Minister Marco Rubio said: “If we stay on the road, we are now, in less than 10 years, everything that concerns us in life depends on whether it is China It will be allowed to obtain it or not … They have come to control the supply of mineral industry around the world. “
It seems that the rare Ukrainian deal is now threatened with extinction, to place it moderately. But its apparent failure – and the way it failed – is to reveal how the Trump administration is likely to seek Rare And other important materials in the context of trade and international policies that freeze not only China but also economic and military allies for a long time, with a long -term welcoming. Russia. China dominates the production of many critical minerals and minerals, but nothing just like rare land. More than 95 percent of rare minerals are produced useful for industry by China, creating weaknesses in the supply chain and national security that the United States and other countries are trying to reduce for more than a decade.
Ukraine does not actually have a rare landless land
First of all, the controversial oval office meeting on February 28 cannot be understood without a decisive context: There are no deposits for rare land crude in Ukraine, known as viable in an economically viable manner. This will be true even if the war is not widely enthusiastic in the east in the country, as it is concentrated greatly from its mineral resources.
It is believed that Ukraine has four areas with large sediments of rare ground materials, according to L. Eric JohnsonSenior Geology with Sweden’s geological survey. “There are four slightly larger sediments: Yassrubetske, Novopoltavske, Azovske and Mazurivske. Yes, this is cute. But we do not have a real and detailed scheme, and how these numbers reach. ”It is believed that the numbers come from Soviet surveys that date back to the 1960s.
“The rare Earth’s deposits are not relevant,” Johnson concludes. “I mean, I will not go to them.” It indicates that two sediments are dominated by a metal called britholite, which is not desirable because it has not been treated for the Earth rare, which means that there is almost nothing in the method of processing chemistry and equipment.
Rare Earth compounds take a variety of colors, as shown with these oxides (clockwise from the upper center): Prayodymium, Cerium, Lanthanum, NewmiumSamarium and Gadulinium.Peggy Greb
“If you want critical minerals, Ukraine Not the place To search for them, “announces Jack La RoverCEO of Critical Mineral Institute. “It is a fantasy. There is no use in any of this. There are some other agenda that happens here. I cannot believe that anyone in Washington actually believes that it makes sense to obtain a rare land in Ukraine. “
Even without a war to confront it, it takes at least 15 years to build a mine to start extraction Rare Wide raw, note Lifton note. According to the conditions of the draft critical material, private companies must invest huge sums, probably one billion dollars or more, to develop rare mines in Ukraine. It is a possibility that Lifton, an IEEE member and former mineral dealer, refuses to refuse to refuse. It is noted that a multinational mining company, Rio Tinto GroupSpend approximately 3 billion dollars on possible mine sites in Arizona and Alaska He still does not have the necessary licenses and permits from the United States government to start building a mine anywhere.
What is the rare Trump’s agenda?
The critical metal deal for the United States of America, Ukraine, was so unavoidable from the facts of the mining industry to the extent that it had some observers wondering what was already behind it. (the White House The press office did not respond to IEEE SICTRUMThe messages that seek to comment on its rare land strategy.) One of the theories is that Trump, ignorance of the details of the rare land mining, was simply approaching the situation as a businessman, looking for a favorable deal. “I doubt that President Trump “He cares about rare land,” says Livon. “He was told that they are important. He works as a pure businessman.”
In any case, the future strategy of the administration is likely to deviate from the rare land from the large strategy of the Biden Administration. Under Biden, the United States Ministry of Defense Companies funded in allied countries, in particular Lynas rare land From Perth, Australia and emptiness From Hanaw, GermanyTo start building rare and related facilities in the United States, but such a strategy seems to be questionable now, given the increasingly controversial Trump administration’s relations with its traditional allies in America, its “first America” morals, and its systematic landing of all the Biden era initiatives.
“If you want critical metals, Ukraine is not the right place to search for it.” Jack Liftonand Critical Mineral Institute
Here, some communicated with Trump’s interesting interest repeatedly in acquiring Canada Greenland- It is known that it has huge reserves of rare land, minerals and other critical minerals. (“In one way or another,” he said about the acquisition GreenlandIn his speech to the American conference on March 4.) “Trump seems interested in regional expansion,” notes. Melissa SandersonA member of the American Rare Rare Earths and a former US foreign service official in the Republic of Democracy Congo.
Interestingly, two years ago, a major Canadian company, New performance materialsShe announced that she was exploring A potential rare mine Location – in Greenland. But the inclusion of Greenland will not do much to solve the rare land problem in the United States, as there is a reason that abundant natural resources in Greenland have not been significantly developed. “Greenland is an exceptional difficult area in which it can be extracted,” says Sanderson. “Temperatures, snow, ice, etc., of course, in the spring, as it is, there are clay oceans.”
“The initial investment will be very huge due to logistical issues,” says Johnson. “You should start mainly by building a complete DeepWateer port to build the foundations of mines.”
According to the Biden Administration, Sanderson explains, “There was a complete global structure dictated by an understanding, as much as the West went, where knowledge exists, where the ability is already, where is the experience already, and who are our closest allies.” Under the current administration, all of this is eliminated through definitions and other factors. Noting that the new performance materials, based in Canada, are already running rare land treatment facilities, Sanderson asks, “Those in their right mind, will make the Canadians address rare lands for them and then return them to US With an additional tariff over it when we are already unable in the West? “
Sanderson adds that one of the problems in the administration is “not to understand the reason for the existence of an international structure for the mining industry. Why is there no one country in the West doing everything.”
“The United States government lacks the perspective of critical metal sources,” added Lifeton. “Because of this deficiency, their acquisition policies are misleading.”
Sanderson’s paradox is not lost that the United States also has Large deposits for rare land crudeIn California, Alaska, Wyoming, Georgia, and Texas, among other places. “he [Trump] It deducts what we have within our borders. “The unbearable question, at the present time, is why?
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