On Friday, April 24, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič officially signed a memorandum of understanding in Washington to establish a strategic partnership on critical minerals, diversify supply chains, and reduce reliance on China in critical minerals.
Rubio stated before the signing that the current situation of excessive concentration of critical mineral resources controlled by one or two places is an “unacceptable risk.”
He pointed out that the US and EU together constitute the largest customer and user base for critical minerals, and if the two sides coordinate policies instead of acting unilaterally, they will have significant market influence.
The signing took place against the backdrop of the US and its allies actively promoting the resilience of mineral supply chains. This initiative stems from the Key Minerals Ministerial Summit hosted by US Vice President JD Vance on February 4 in Washington, where the establishment of a “Preferred Trade Group for Critical Minerals” was announced. Secretary of State Rubio revealed that representatives from 54 countries and the European Commission attended the summit.
China currently dominates the global processing of various critical minerals and has used this position to restrict exports, depress prices, and weaken the diversification capability of other countries’ supplies. Critical minerals are widely used in industries such as semiconductors, electric vehicles, advanced weapons, and batteries.
At the same time, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer also announced a separate “US-EU Action Plan for Resilient Critical Mineral Supply Chains” as the main mechanism for coordinating mineral policies between the two sides, with the long-term goal of reaching binding multilateral trade agreements with like-minded partners.
Although the action plan does not directly mention China, it clearly states the need to address “widespread non-market policies and practices” to prevent disruptions and economic coercion in the supply chain.
The plan includes various measures such as border price adjustment baselines, price differential subsidies, off-take agreements, mining and processing standards, investment review cooperation, and coordinated rapid response in times of crisis, with inventory coordination cooperation also explicitly included.
Šefčovič stated that the real test lies in implementation, and both sides need to translate the agreement into concrete projects that have practical effects on businesses.
According to Reuters, the agreement signed this time is still of a framework nature, rather than a complete trade system and measures.
The action plan indicates that the feasibility of relevant mechanisms, such as which specific minerals will be covered, how to calculate price baselines, and how to share subsidies, is still subject to negotiation and resolution.
Previously, the Trump administration signed similar action plans with Japan and Mexico and established a supply framework with partners such as Australia.
This demonstrates that Washington is actively building a broader critical minerals ally club. The inclusion of the EU in this initiative signifies a clear transatlantic effort to systematically counter China’s control over critical supply chains.