{"id":13420,"date":"2026-07-28T11:48:18","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T15:48:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdgnews.com\/?p=13420"},"modified":"2026-07-28T11:48:19","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T15:48:19","slug":"the-race-for-critical-minerals-reaches-the-un-security-council","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sdgnews.com\/zh\/the-race-for-critical-minerals-reaches-the-un-security-council\/","title":{"rendered":"The Race for Critical Minerals Reaches the UN Security Council"},"content":{"rendered":"

UNITED NATIONS<\/strong> \u2014 The global contest for the minerals powering clean energy, advanced technologies and modern weapons systems moved to the center of international security discussions last Wednesday, as the United Nations warned that poorly governed competition could deepen conflicts and prevent resource-rich developing countries from benefiting fully from their natural wealth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During a July 22 open debate at the UN Security Council, Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres urged governments to ensure that rising demand for lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper and rare earth elements becomes a foundation for peace and sustainable development rather than another driver of exploitation and instability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The meeting reflected a widening recognition that critical minerals are no longer viewed simply as industrial commodities. They have become strategic assets shaping national security policies, trade relationships and competition among the world\u2019s largest economies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Clean Energy Inputs to Strategic Assets<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Critical minerals are essential to electric vehicles, batteries, renewable-energy systems, semiconductors, digital infrastructure and defense technologies. Global demand is expected to rise sharply as governments expand electrification and pursue energy-security and climate objectives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But supply chains remain highly concentrated. The International Energy Agency\u2019s Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2026<\/em>, published days before the Security Council meeting, warned that governments must strengthen emergency preparedness and diversify supply chains as geopolitical tensions and export restrictions expose vulnerabilities across the global economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

China controls more than 80 percent of global critical-mineral refining capacity, according to Reuters, creating a strategic dependence that the United States, European Union and other major economies are investing heavily to reduce. The IEA has estimated that restrictions on rare-earth exports could place approximately $6.5 trillion in annual global manufacturing output at risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That concentration has transformed critical-mineral policy into a central component of economic and national-security planning. Governments are pursuing domestic mining, processing facilities, strategic stockpiles and agreements with allied countries, while seeking to reduce exposure to potential supply disruptions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diversification Is Proving Difficult<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The push to build alternative supply chains is moving more slowly than many governments\u2019 policy timelines suggest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reuters reported this week that the United States remains far from producing enough critical minerals and rare-earth magnets to meet domestic demand, despite tens of billions of dollars in public support for nearly 150 companies. U.S. demand for the most common type of rare-earth magnet reached approximately 48,000 metric tons in 2025, while domestic suppliers produced only about 300 metric tons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington has set a January 1, 2027, deadline for defense suppliers to stop purchasing designated minerals, magnets and related materials from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea. Industry executives told Reuters that waivers may nevertheless remain necessary because new mines, processing plants and manufacturing capacity can take years to develop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Financing presents another obstacle. The Financial Times<\/em> reported that Western critical-mineral projects face significant public-funding gaps, despite growing recognition that government support is needed to attract private investment and compete with China\u2019s established processing and overseas investment networks. The IEA estimates that more than $500 billion could be required to meet Western supply-chain objectives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These constraints illustrate a central challenge: mineral deposits alone do not create secure supply chains. Processing capacity, infrastructure, technical expertise, long-term purchasing commitments and predictable investment conditions are equally important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Development Opportunity \u2014 or Another Extractive Cycle<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For mineral-producing developing countries, the strategic competition presents both opportunity and risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala told the Security Council that rising demand could become a \u201conce-in-a-lifetime\u201d economic opportunity for resource-rich nations. But she cautioned that developing economies could remain concentrated at the lowest-value stage of production while processing, technology, skilled employment and profits continue to accrue elsewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Development Opportunity \u2014 or Another Extractive Cycle<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Okonjo-Iweala called for resource-rich countries to expand local refining and processing, strengthen cooperation among mineral-producing economies and use their market position to attract investment in higher-value industries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That approach would represent a departure from a longstanding pattern in which raw resources are exported at relatively low value and returned as more expensive manufactured products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mineral Wealth and Conflict<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The debate also focused on countries where natural resources have helped finance armed groups or intensified competition for territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Guterres pointed to eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, where illegal mining and mineral smuggling have generated revenue for armed groups while civilians bear the consequences of persistent violence. He also cited Sudan, where the exploitation of resources including gold has contributed to a broader conflict that has displaced millions of people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The concern is not limited to active conflict zones. Large mining projects can generate disputes over land rights, environmental damage, displacement and the distribution of economic benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Financial Times<\/em> recently documented these tensions at Kenya\u2019s Mrima Hill, a culturally significant site that also contains valuable deposits of rare-earth elements. Competition for mining rights has attracted international interest, while local communities have demanded consultation, environmental protections and fair compensation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Such cases demonstrate that securing access to minerals does not automatically produce development. Outcomes depend on governance, transparency, environmental safeguards and whether local communities participate meaningfully in decisions and benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Risk of Competing Mineral Blocs<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The expanding use of export controls, subsidies, purchasing restrictions and preferential trade arrangements also raises the prospect of an increasingly fragmented global minerals market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The United States and European Union have taken steps to coordinate critical-mineral trade policies, while Washington has promoted agreements with allies and partners intended to reduce reliance on Chinese supply chains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These initiatives may strengthen resilience for participating countries, but they could also divide the market into competing geopolitical blocs. Developing countries may face pressure to align their mining and processing sectors with one group of major powers or another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Security Council discussion suggested that multilateral rules will be increasingly important in preventing supply-chain competition from becoming a destabilizing struggle for control over resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Test for the Global Transition<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Critical minerals now sit at the intersection of climate policy, trade, industrial strategy, development and international security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The central question is no longer simply whether the world can produce enough minerals to support the energy and digital transitions. It is whether those materials can be extracted, processed and traded without reproducing the corruption, conflict and unequal economic relationships historically associated with valuable natural resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last Wednesday\u2019s Security Council debate signaled that governments increasingly view the governance of critical minerals as a matter of peace and security. Whether the emerging mineral economy delivers broader prosperity will depend on how effectively countries balance supply-chain resilience with international cooperation, community rights and the development ambitions of the nations where much of the world\u2019s mineral wealth is located.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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