Highlights
- China is implementing a comprehensive strategy to consolidate control over rare earth elements and critical minerals through multi-agency coordination and enforcement.
- The PRC is pursuing upstream sovereignty by expanding domestic mineral reserves and shutting down international transshipment routes.
- Western nations are urged to develop robust industrial policies and strategic investments to counter China’s resource weaponization approach.
In a meticulous exposé, Matthew Johnson of The Jamestown Foundation reveals how Beijing’s latest “trade diplomacy” is a public relations decoy for a sweeping consolidation of state control over the critical minerals supply chain. While U.S. and Chinese officials exchanged words of cooperation during trade talks in Geneva on May 12, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) moved decisively behind the scenes to cement its grip on the mining, processing, and export of rare earth elements and other strategic minerals.
See Trade Talks, Real Moves: PRC Locks Down Critical Minerals Behind the Scenes (opens in a new tab).
So, according to Johnson, what are Beijing and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) up to?
Key Moves by Beijing
China has moved from mere rhetoric to coordinated execution of a “full-chain control” strategy for rare earths and other critical minerals. At a Changsha summit on May 12, more than a dozen central and provincial agencies—including Commerce, State Security, Customs, and Industry—were ordered to conduct daily oversight of mining, processing, licensing, and export activity. Within hours, joint enforcement teams began cracking down on smuggling rings and third-country trans-shipment routes, stepping up port inspections and customs investigations to block foreign circumvention.
Rare Earth Exchanges (REEx) regularly translate news from China’s state-backed rare earth mining conglomerates, validating Mr. Johnson’s overall premise.
Simultaneously, the Ministry of Natural Resources launched an aggressive “exploration breakthrough” campaign to enlarge domestic reserves, locking in upstream supply for China’s defense and high-tech sectors. The timing, coinciding with amicable U.S.–China trade talks, highlights Beijing’s dual-track diplomacy: publicly signaling cooperation while quietly tightening its strategic leverage over minerals the West urgently needs.
Strategic Sophistication, Not Just Retaliation
Matthew Johnson’s reporting is sharp and well-sourced, uncovering not just Beijing’s regulatory crackdown but its broader strategic architecture. What’s clear is that the PRC’s actions are not reactive; they are part of a pre-planned, multi-agency doctrine that embeds rare earth control into China’s national security calculus. The United States and its allies should take careful note. See the REEx breakdown table below for ease of reading.
| Key Point | Summary |
| It’s Not Just Export Control—It’s Economic Warfare Doctrine | Labeling this campaign as “enforcement” understates its strategic depth. What Johnson describes is command economy mobilization for geopolitical leverage—a rare alignment of China’s internal regulatory machine with its external trade policy. This is not just compliance enforcement—it’s resource-based deterrence, backed by intelligence, customs, and military-aligned ministries |
| China Is Plugging the Loopholes—Fast | The PRC has identified and is actively shutting down the same transshipment workarounds that Western importers increasingly rely on to dodge official bans. From Shenzhen to Changsha, joint investigations are mapping the logistical arteries that move illicit REEs out of China via Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. With enforcement falling under state security authorities, this is no longer regulatory—it’s counterintelligence-inflected industrial policy |
| Upstream Sovereignty” Is Beijing’s Next Frontier | Johnson highlights Beijing’s effort to secure its upstream base, often neglected in Western coverage. China is not just the world’s dominant processor—it’s now turning inward to secure and expand domestic mineral reserves. This diversifies risk, fortifies self-reliance, and shields China from potential global supply shocks—a strategic firewall against sanctions or military escalation |
What the West Should Question
Despite Johnson’s excellent coverage, some assumptions warrant further scrutiny here at REEx.
First is this just a reaction to Trump’s unilateral tariff scheme, and corresponding pressure? No. The scale, sequencing, and inter-agency alignment suggest this strategy predates and transcends recent trade friction. The PRC has been testing export leverage (e.g., gallium, germanium bans in 2023) and integrating resource control into statecraft since the 14th Five-Year Plan. REEx has translated decades-long Chinese plans, premised on rare earth and critical mineral monopolization.
Second, can firms in the West rely on “friendly intermediaries” like Southeast Asia or Africa to plug gaps? Increasingly, less so. As REEx has reported, China’s crackdown aims to identify and sever these workaround routes. If Beijing decides that any attempt at re-routing minerals through proxies is “collusion,” Western firms may find entire supply chains frozen without notice.
REEx POV– Western Governments Must Wake Up—Now
The PRC’s moves, as detailed by Johnson, underscore the urgent need for coherent industrial policy in the U.S., EU, Japan, and allied nations. Words like “friend-shoring” and “de-risking” have become clichés while China implements a working doctrine of resource weaponization.
The solution will require as this media continuously calls out for—industrial policy—
- Public-private investment in refining, magnet manufacturing, and upstream exploration
- Major investment in recycling technologies
- Permanent strategic stockpiles of rare earths and battery metals
- Intelligence sharing and export screening coordination among allies (e.g., Five Eyes, AUKUS)
- Support for direct investment in high-risk but high-value zones like the DRC, Greenland, and Central Asia
- Trade conditionality—limiting market access for firms complicit in China’s enforcement structure
A Tightening Noose
As trade officials shake hands in Geneva, Beijing is locking its hand around the throat of the global rare earth market. Johnson’s piece exposes not just a policy shift but a systemic tightening of the world’s most critical supply chain. Unless the West responds with equal seriousness, the future of green tech, AI, and defense innovation will depend not on innovation but on Beijing’s next export permit.
The Jamestown Foundation
A Washington, D.C.–based nonpartisan defense policy think tank, The Jamestown Foundation was founded in 1984 as a platform to support Soviet defectors. Its stated mission today is to inform and educate policymakers about events and trends that it regards as being strategically important to the United States. Jamestown publications focus on China, Russia, Eurasia, and global terrorism.
Join the Global Discussion
For expert insights, policy tracking, and supply chain intelligence in rare earths and critical minerals, join the Rare Earth Exchanges Forum:
Leave a Reply