ANI | Washington DC [US], February 4: As the United States hosted the inaugural Critical Minerals Ministerial on Wednesday, US Vice President JD Vance proposed the creation of a preferential trade zone for critical minerals to protect supply chains from external disruptions and called for the establishment of reference prices that reflect real-world fair market value.
The US Vice President made the remarks during his opening address at the ministerial.
“This morning, the Trump administration is proposing a concrete mechanism to return the global critical minerals market to a healthier, more competitive state,” Vance said. “A preferential trade zone for critical minerals, protected from external disruptions through enforceable price floors. We will establish reference prices for critical minerals at each stage of production—pricing that reflects real-world fair market value.”
Vance added that for members of the preferential trade zone, these reference prices would operate as a floor and be maintained through adjustable tariffs to ensure pricing integrity.
He noted that countries represented at the ministerial had become dependent on supply arrangements they neither chose nor controlled, leaving them vulnerable to sudden disruptions.
“I think every single one of us represented in this room has become dependent on arrangements we did not choose and arrangements that we cannot control,” he said. “Access to the things that protect our people and sustain our way of life—from missile defence systems to energy infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, and emerging technologies—can sometimes vanish in the blink of an eye.”
Vance stressed that the Trump administration believes it is the responsibility of government to confront such vulnerabilities and expressed a desire to work collaboratively with partner nations to address these challenges.
Highlighting the importance of alliances, he said the ministerial aims to diversify global supply chains for critical minerals while strengthening partner countries involved in the effort.
“Our goal here is to align trade policy, development finance, and diplomatic engagement toward a shared strategic objective,” Vance said. “That objective is very simple: diversifying global supply in the critical minerals market while strengthening the partner countries who help all of us in this shared effort.”
Vance also indicated that the United States wants to prevent markets from being flooded with cheap critical minerals that undercut domestic manufacturers, only for prices to rise unfairly once competition is eliminated.
“We want members to form a trading block among allies and partners—one that guarantees American access to American industrial might while also expanding production across the entire zone,” he said, adding that prices within the preferential trade zone would remain consistent regardless of global market fluctuations.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is chairing the ministerial, highlighted the importance of economic security through critical minerals and called on allies to work together not only to rectify past mistakes but also to pool collective talent and innovation.
“We are gathered here today as the first step to rectify the mistake and bring together our collective talent and innovation,” Rubio said.
He observed that mining had come to be viewed as less glamorous compared to designing computers, a shift that led to outsourcing critical aspects of economic security.
“As we embraced what was new and glamorous, we outsourced what seemed old and unfashionable,” Rubio said. “One day we realised we had outsourced our economic security and our very future.”
Calling the situation an international challenge requiring multilateral solutions, Rubio emphasised the central role of critical minerals in powering infrastructure, industry, and national defence.
“Our goal is to have a global supply chain that is enduring and available to everyone, every nation, at an affordable price,” he said, describing it as a top priority for the administration.
Rubio also highlighted the diverse roles countries can play—from exercising purchasing power as consumers to refining minerals where resources are unavailable—to build a more resilient and diversified global market.
While noting that the initiative began with the United States, Rubio called for it to evolve into a broader international effort among like-minded countries to ensure secure and resilient supply chains without the risk of economic leverage or disruption.
The United States is hosting the inaugural Critical Minerals Ministerial in Washington DC, bringing together delegations from over 50 countries to advance collaboration on securing and diversifying global critical mineral supply chains, according to the US State Department.
Ahead of the ministerial, on Monday, US President Donald Trump announced Project Vault, a supply chain security initiative that will establish the US Strategic Critical Minerals Reserve, an independently governed public-private partnership designed to store essential raw materials across the country.
The gathering is being described as a historic effort to build collective momentum for cooperation to secure critical minerals essential to technological innovation, economic growth, and national security. (ANI)
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