Trump Opens National Security Probe Into Critical Mineral Imports

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick will have 90 days to conduct the analysis and submit a report.

Brine pools from a lithium mine that belongs to U.S.-based Albemarle Corp., on the Atacama Salt Flat in the Atacama Desert, Chile, on Aug. 16, 2018. Ivan Alvarado/Reuters

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on April 15 tasking Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to investigate the national security effects of the United States importing processed critical minerals and the products made from them.

“The United States manufacturing and defense industrial bases remain dependent on foreign sources for processed critical mineral products,” the order stated. “Many of these foreign sources are at risk of serious, sustained, and long-term supply chain shocks.

“Should the United States lose access to processed critical minerals from foreign sources, the United States commercial and defense manufacturing base for derivative products could face significant shortages and an inability to meet demand.”

Critical minerals, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, and the products made from them include the following: aluminum, which is used in nearly all aspects of the economy; arsenic, which is used in semiconductors; europium, which is used in nuclear control rods; cobalt, lithium, and nickel, which are all used in rechargeable batteries; samarium, which is used in nuclear reactors and cancer treatments; and tungsten, which is used to make wear-resistant metals.

The president’s order argues that the United States’ reliance on other countries to process these minerals exposes it to possible security risks because of vulnerabilities in the global supply chain or supplier nations looking to gain a superior position.

“A strong national defense depends on a robust economy and price stability, a resilient manufacturing and defense industrial base, and secure domestic supply chains,” the order stated. “Critical minerals, including rare earth elements, in the form of processed minerals are essential raw materials and critical production inputs required for economic and national security.”

This sentiment was echoed by Adm. Samuel Paparo, commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, when he appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee on April 10 and warned of the global reliance on Taiwan for its semiconductors and the Great Depression-level effect that an armed conflict over the island would have upon the world.

Lutnick will have 90 days to conduct the analysis, which must include, among other things, “the distortive effects of the predatory economic, pricing, and market manipulation strategies and practices used by countries that process critical minerals that are exported to the United States, including the distortive effects on domestic investment and the viability of United States production.”

An initial report will then be due to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth; Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent; U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer; Peter Navarro, senior counselor to the president for trade and manufacturing; and Kevin Hassett, assistant to the president for economic policy. They will have 15 days to comment, after which Lutnick will have 180 days to submit a final report with recommended actions for the administration. Those actions could include more tariffs and incentives.

This executive action comes shortly after a similar one asking the Commerce Department to investigate the national security effects of specifically importing semiconductors and pharmaceutical products.