Quad launches major initiative to steady supply of critical minerals

Washington: In a significant move, the Quad grouping has launched an initiative to ensure the availability of critical minerals under a broader goal to strengthen economic security amid concerns over China's coercive tactics, including price manipulation in the sector.

The decision on rolling out the "Quad Critical Minerals Initiative" was announced after a meeting of foreign ministers of the member nations of the grouping in the US capital on Tuesday.

A readout of the meeting said the new initiative is an "ambitious expansion" of the Quad partnership to strengthen economic security and collective resilience by collaborating on securing and diversifying critical mineral supply chains.

The meeting was attended by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and her Japanese counterpart Takeshi Iwaya.

"This new flagship initiative, alongside the high-impact programmes and outcomes the Quad is realising, will enable our four countries to bring economic opportunity and prosperity to our people and the region," it said.

In a joint statement, the Quad foreign ministers expressed "deep concern" over the "abrupt constriction and future reliability" of key supply chains, specifically for critical minerals.

"This includes the use of non-market policies and practices for critical minerals, certain derivative products, and mineral processing technology," they said without directly mentioning China.

"We underscore the importance of diversified and reliable global supply chains. Reliance on any one country for processing and refining critical minerals and derivative goods production exposes our industries to economic coercion, price manipulation, and supply chain disruptions, which further harm our economic and national security," they said.

A fact-sheet unveiled at the end of the meeting said the Quad is expanding maritime law enforcement cooperation which will support efforts to curtail illicit maritime activity, including piracy, drug trafficking, infringements on border security, and illegal, unreported, and unregulated (fishing.

It also noted the launch of the first-ever "Quad-at-Sea Ship Observer Mission" this month.

The initiative is aimed at strengthening interoperability and knowledge-sharing to address unlawful maritime activities across the Indo-Pacific.

Later this month, the Quad will hold the second maritime legal dialogue to advance efforts to uphold maritime order, the document noted.

It aid the "Quad Critical Minerals Initiative" will strengthen cooperation on priorities such as securing and diversifying reliable supply chains, and electronic waste, critical minerals recovery and re-processing.

"The Initiative will expand the Quad's cooperation on supply chain resilience measures for critical minerals, and we look forward to coordinating with private sector partners to facilitate increased investments," it added.