On February 2, President Trump of the United States announced the launch of the “Repository Plan,” which will establish a nearly 12 billion dollars reserve of critical minerals to reduce the risk of supply chain vulnerability to trade frictions and export controls. Experts pointed out that this move is not only a systemic response to China’s rare earth “economic threat” but also involves the reshaping of alliances between the United States and mineral-producing countries, thus reshaping the global critical mineral supply chain landscape.
President Trump, at the White House, stated that the action of the “Repository Plan” is to “ensure that American businesses and workers will never be harmed by any shortages.” Analysts believe that this reserve policy is in response to China’s monopoly position in the highly processed metals sector, aiming to avoid critical minerals being used as bargaining chips in trade negotiations.
Chinese current affairs commentator Wang He bluntly told Epoch Times that this is a “forced choice” because the critical mineral supply chain “has been controlled and infiltrated by China for too long,” causing an impact on the United States and the West; he described the establishment of a 12 billion dollars strategic reserve as a “milestone move” in participating in private industry supply chains.
In his view, President Trump, as a businessman-turned-president, is more inclined to design national security-related economic policies with a commercial mindset, trying to balance strategic needs and financial sustainability.
According to previous reports by the Epoch Times, the “Repository Plan” focuses on critical minerals such as rare earths. Rare earths are crucial for national defense, automotive, and electronics industries; however, China controls approximately 70% of global rare earth mining and around 90% of rare earth processing capacity, thereby exerting high control.
During the trade negotiations last year sparked by Trump’s tariff policies, China restricted the export of rare earth materials crucial for jet engines, radar systems, electric vehicles, laptops, and smartphones; Trump said, “We do not want to go through a situation like last year again.”
Wang Hsiao-wen, an expert in US-China technology warfare at the Institute for National Defense Studies in Taiwan, told the Epoch Times that this is the United States’ countermeasure against China’s rare earth export controls, indicating that the US will seek to break free from the rare earth “economic threat,” pursue resource autonomy and supply security, and may even affect alliances between the US and mineral-rich countries, influencing the power dynamics between the US and China in the international community.
Reportedly, the “Repository Plan” will operate based on a public-private partnership model rather than solely government stockpiles. The Export-Import Bank of the United States will provide approximately 10 billion dollars in loans, combined with nearly 2 billion dollars in private capital, for the procurement and reserve of critical minerals, and supply them to the automotive, electronics, and other manufacturing industries when necessary.
Trump emphasized that this is not about hoarding unilaterally but about creating an operational mechanism aimed at avoiding long-term financial burdens while ensuring that critical materials are available for industrial use.
Wang He described this operation as a more market-oriented “Costco model,” akin to bulk member purchases, not going the state-owned route. The core of the plan lies in operating through “commercial channels,” with the government providing support through loans and investments rather than directly controlling production and distribution, leaving enterprises as the primary operators.
In contrast, the Chinese system has long exhibited characteristics of high state dominance, with deep government involvement in mineral extraction, refining, and export decisions, making rare earths both industrial resources and political tools.
Wang He gave an example that China relies on a vast state-owned defense industry system with massive state investments, but with low efficiency, often leading to financial sinkholes; while the US does not have a state-owned defense industry, it possesses a highly mature market economy, with operations being more efficient and flexible.
Wang Hsiao-wen added from a strategic competition perspective that a public-private partnership is capable of combining the capabilities of both sectors and forming a “whole-of-society approach” when facing China’s “civil-military fusion” strategy; additionally, rare earth mining, refining, and production costs are high, making it difficult for the private sector alone to bear, and government capital entry aids in expanding mobilization, potentially even grouping together foreign capital in a third country, becoming a lever to unite allies.
Trump likened the “Repository Plan” to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), with its policy logic aimed at stabilizing markets and economic operations at the national level during sharp price and supply fluctuations.
In response, Wang He pointed out that the critical minerals market is relatively small in scale, highly concentrated in impact, and once supply is disrupted, it could impact the entire industry chain, hence the necessity of establishing “effective inventories” while avoiding excessive hoarding leading to financial burdens.
Wang Hsiao-wen believes that currently discussing “strategic storage” may be “going too far,” and what Trump prioritizes is resolving the global threat of Chinese rare earths; however, if the plan is successfully implemented and the United States regains sufficient rare earth resources, China would find it difficult to dominate production and pricing, thus potentially creating a “buffer” effect.
When Trump announced the plan in the Oval Office, General Motors CEO Mary Barra, mining billionaire Robert Friedland, among others, were present. Barra said, “Having a resilient supply chain is critical for our country… especially for the automotive industry.” This also reflects the urgency of the manufacturing industry to “diversify sources” of critical minerals.
Regarding China and the global supply chain, Wang Hsiao-wen believes that if the US can successfully extract and produce rare earths, major players in industries such as automotive, semiconductors, AI hardware, electric vehicles, and defense will “no longer need to consider China’s preferences,” and the supply risks associated with promoting digital transformation and AI revolution in various countries may decrease.
Wang He judges that this is “just the beginning,” and in the future, the United States can “strongly establish” an alternative system in exploration, reserve, extraction, and refining processes in partnership with the West, thereby prompting a “major adjustment” in the global critical mineral supply chain.
According to the Associated Press, on Wednesday (February 4), the “Repository Plan” will become the focus of a ministerial-level meeting on critical minerals at the US State Department, chaired by Secretary of State Pompeo, with Vice President J.D. Vance giving a keynote speech and attended by officials from dozens of European, African, and Asian countries.
The State Department statement indicated that the meeting “will create momentum for cooperation among participants in securing rare earths” and is expected to sign numerous bilateral agreements to strengthen supply chain logistics coordination.
Additionally, data shows that government-supported loans have a term of 15 years. The US government has previously invested in rare earth mining companies, such as MP Materials, and provided financial support to Vulcan Elements and USA Rare Earth, highlighting the Trump administration’s dual-track approach of policy finance and industry investment to strengthen the formation speed of a “non-Chinese supply chain” for critical minerals.