Washington’s mining ambitions may be complicated by the erosion of industrial know-how and a weak education pipeline, experts say
5-MIN READ5-MIN ListenMeredith ChenandFan ChenPublished: 6:00am, 14 Apr 2026The US drive to reduce reliance on China for rare earths and critical minerals will take more than fixing resource and processing gaps, experts say, noting that the decisive factor would be talent.Eroding industrial know-how, a weak education pipeline, and the lack of a consistent long-term strategy could complicate US ambitions to become a mining powerhouse and rival or even surpass China, they warned.
Rare earths are a critical component in many advanced weapons systems. Observers said China’s dominance in rare earths stemmed not only from its industrial scale but also from decades of accumulated engineering expertise, which the United States was struggling to rebuild after decades of decline.
US says Trump’s China visit delayed until May because of Iran conflict
US says Trump’s China visit delayed until May because of Iran conflictAccording to Marina Zhang, associate professor at the University of Technology Sydney’s Australia-China Relations Institute, “rebuilding a rare earth supply chain is fundamentally a human capital challenge”.
