Jacob Helberg, US undersecretary of state for economic affairs, said in an interview that allies need a full supply chain approach to reduce reliance on China after Beijing's export controls disrupted mineral supplies.
Jacob Helberg told the South China Morning Post that China's export controls on minerals alerted allies and caused serious disruptions. "When it comes to the world, our allies were really put on alert by China’s export controls of minerals that have really come back to bite them in pretty serious ways," he said.
Beijing's restrictions triggered a scramble for supplies and factory shutdowns in the United States and other developed nations. A temporary US-China truce in October restored some export flows, yet Japan and other countries still face shortages.
Helberg stressed that a whole-of-supply-chain strategy is required to decrease dependence on China for rare earths and related technologies.