India, U.S. Sign Critical Minerals Pact to Reduce Reliance on China

NEW DELHI — India and the U.S. on Tuesday signed a strategic agreement to expand cooperation on critical minerals and rare earths, key materials used in semiconductors, electric vehicles, solar panels and advanced defense products.

The agreement, signed during the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in New Delhi, comes amid growing concern over China’s dominance in critical mineral supply chains and its ability to disrupt access to materials essential to high-tech manufacturing.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio were present for the signing.

“We are today signing a bilateral India-US framework on securing supplies of mining and processing of critical minerals and rare earths. This is something we have also discussed today at the Quad meeting and whether we are doing it bilaterally, or in the Quad format or as a larger gathering of like-minded nations, it is something very timely and critical,” Jaishankar said.

Jaishankar said the framework is intended to deepen cooperation across the full critical minerals and rare earth supply chain, including mining, processing, recycling and related investment.

Rubio said the agreement reflects a shared strategic interest in ensuring that innovation-driven economies are not dependent on a single source for foundational industrial materials.

The U.S. and India “have a strategic and shared interest in the fact that vibrant innovation economies such as ours cannot afford to leave the foundational materials of these industries vulnerable to single source monopolies that could deny us these things, not just in a time of conflict, but as a leverage point contrary to our sovereign national interests,” Rubio said.

Rubio said the pact was a concrete example of the strategic relationship between the two countries.

“I have spoken often during my time here over the last few days about the strategic alliance between the United States and India and how important that is for our national interest in the United States. And today is a tangible example of it. We are two countries that have strategic interests in ensuring reliable long-term access to critical minerals and supply chains that are important for our innovation economy,” he said.

Rubio said the groundwork for the agreement was laid Feb. 4, when India participated in the Critical Minerals Forum hosted in Washington.

He also noted that India signed the Pax Silica Declaration, a U.S.-led initiative aimed at building secure and trusted supply chains for artificial intelligence, semiconductors and critical minerals. (Source: IANS)