The Elements of Power : How Rare Earth Metals Are Quietly Shaping the Geopolitics of Tomorrow
- Hindu College Gazette Web Team
- 5 days ago
- 7 min read
China controls and leverages rare earth elements as a powerful geopolitical tool. From Japan to the U.S., every nation is sounding the alarm. India, despite holding the third-largest reserves, hasn’t even boarded the outbound train of progress. So what should India do—and is it already too late for the rest of the world to challenge the dragon?Your Chemistry teacher gives you a task to learn all the elements in the periodic table so that your scores may increase in the next exam, but you question them about what is at the bottom: why aren't they placed in the periodic table, and why this discrimination? And you find your curiosity to be ignored, not considered worthy enough to be answered. So you search for it online and hear the word “rare earth element (REE)” repeatedly with China’s flag next to it.
Suddenly, you can’t unsee them, your whole perspective changes after you start seeing those elements everywhere around you, from your glitchy budget earphones to sleek iPads, from your classroom projectors to the Mangalyaan Mission, they are everywhere.
Welcome to the world of Rare Earth Elements (REE). Ironically, they aren't rare at all
Let’s understand Rare Earth Element by breaking its terms. Rare does not mean they are sparsely available, rather, they are more abundant than gold and silver combined, but what makes them rare is the absence of concentration at one place, which makes sure they are evenly distributed, making their sole mining non-profitable. The next term Earth means things that don’t mix with water and stay the same when heated. Lastly, an element is a pure substance made of only one kind of atom.If you see the periodic table, you can spot them quite easily. Here, have a look.
REE includes elements from atomic number 57 to 71 plus Scandium and Ytterium. Seventeen elements make this family and they are used all around the globe, be it in batteries, magnets, lasers, spacecrafts, aircrafts etc. For instance, the pride of the Indian Air Force “Rafael Fighter” jets contain around 500 Kg of rare earth metal. Now that we know the importance of rare earth metals, let’s dive deep into their very existence.
How It All Began
All the fancy work behind the discovery of rare earth metals didn’t happen in some high-tech laboratory, but in a damp quarry in the small Swedish town of Ytterby, back in 1787. A Swedish army officer named Carl Axel Arrhenius stumbled upon a heavy black rock. Intrigued by its unusual look and weight, he sent it to geologists for further examination. And eureka! — the first rare earth mineral was discovered. From that same rock, three more rare earth elements were later identified. All four elements — yttrium, terbium, erbium, and ytterbium — were eventually named after that quiet little town where it all began.
Fig.- Swedish Army officer Carl Axel Arrhenius
Slow and Steady lost the race The mining of these elements takes place in open fields — more precisely, through open-pit mining. Unlike underground mining used for coal and other minerals, open-pit mining is far more polluting. Rare earth ores are often bound to radioactive elements like thorium, creating a deadly yet profitable symphony of pollution, chemistry, and money.
Back in the 1980s, the Mountain Pass mine in California’s Mojave Desert was the world’s leading supplier of rare earth minerals. But soon, the region’s biodiversity began to suffer, especially the habitat of the rare desert tortoise, a species already at risk. The environmental damage forced a massive cleanup effort, so expensive that it wiped out the mine’s profitability. By 2002, Mountain Pass was shut down. Ownership passed from Chevron to Molycorp Minerals LLP, but even at its peak, it supplied nearly 20% of the global rare earth demand.
With the U.S. stepping back, China picked up the axe. Armed with loose environmental regulations and a laser-focused government policy, China ramped up both mining and refining. Today, it produces over 70% of the world's rare earth metals and controls more than 90% of the processing, making it the undisputed leader in the industry.
Rare Earth Monopoly
While the U.S. was stepping back in the 1990s, China was stepping up — and fast. It didn’t just extract rare earths; it focused on where the real value lies: processing. China restructured its labour systems, modernised equipment, optimised chemical processes, and reshaped its laws to favour industry over environment, giving it a clear comparative advantage over countries like the U.S.
The world didn’t fully grasp China's grip until 2010, when it weaponised this control. During a territorial dispute with Japan over the Senkaku Islands, China imposed a two-month embargo on rare earth exports. Japan, heavily reliant on Chinese supply for its electronics and automotive sectors, was brought to its knees. In that moment, rare earths transformed from raw materials to geopolitical leverage.
China then pulled a textbook monopolistic move: it flooded the global market with cheap rare earths, driving competitors out of business. Once the competition dried up, it raised prices and tightened exports, all while continuing to dominate refining.
Today, China accounts for roughly 70% of global rare earth extraction, and an overwhelming 90% of processing, cementing its near-total control over one of the most strategically important supply chains on Earth.
The Carrot and Stick Game
In geopolitics classes, we are taught that there are rewards for allies, restrictions for rivals. China has mastered this with REE, using them as both economic carrots and political sticks.
Take Malaysia — China, not only helped the country tap into its rare earth reserves but also aided in building its processing capacity, which Malaysia embraced eagerly. Similarly, Vietnam launched a rare earth processing plant with Chinese assistance, tightening regional ties.
But the story is very different for adversaries. In 2010, as mentioned, China slapped an embargo on Japan. Fast forward to 2025 — amidst the ongoing tariff boxing match between global giants, Xi Jinping delivered a knockout blow by restricting exports of 7 out of 17 rare earth elements to the U.S. During high-stakes London talks, rare earths were the trump card, and China played it well. In exchange for easing restrictions, they reportedly secured access to cutting-edge semiconductor manufacturing tech — the next big weapon in their strategic arsenal.
Where does India stand?
These restrictions are already creating ripples across the world. Suzuki halted its EV plans in India, and while India only imported 2,770 tonnes of REEs in 2023–24, the real concern lies deeper. Most of India’s electronics and defence components are assembled using imports from the EU, the U.S., or directly from China. As Western supply chains falter, India’s dependency on China is only increasing, especially since domestic production is barely off the ground.
Despite having 6% of the world’s REE deposits, India contributes less than 1% to global production. The government often chants the mantra of “self-reliance,” but on the ground, there’s little to show. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has urged for private sector participation, along with a rare earth mission modelled after the Indian Semiconductor Mission.
If that’s too much to ask, maybe officials could just copy-paste better, like from “Made in China 2025,” the policy China launched a decade ago to dominate high-tech industries, including rare earths.
Currently, IREL India Limited, a government-owned Miniratna company under the Department of Atomic Energy, holds a monopoly on REE extraction from monazite beach sand found across coastal Indian states. But their focus remains narrow, mostly on thorium, used for atomic energy.
So, where’s the broader rare earth strategy?
Oh, wait — maybe the lens needed to see it is still being made in China. What are the alternatives? When Japan faced a rare earth embargo in 2010, it became a wake-up call. Suddenly, one of the world's most advanced economies realized it had built its industrial empire on a fragile supply chain. Japan responded not with panic, but with a long-term strategy. It began stockpiling rare earths, investing in mining and processing, and — most importantly — diversifying away from China.
A key example of this shift is Lynas Corporation in Australia, now the world’s largest rare earth producer outside China. Japan also heavily invested in rare earth recycling, which helped it reduce its dependency on Chinese supply from 90% to around 50% over the years.
But China, in turn, is now trying to prevent similar “jailbreaks” by other nations. It has done two things:
Set ceilings on commercial REE exports, making it harder for countries to quietly build reserves.
Introduced end-use disclosure rules, requiring buyers to reveal exactly how and where the rare earths will be used — a smart way to track geopolitical leverage.
In the short term, recycling and a circular economy offer practical alternatives. Take Apple, which now recycles 99% of its rare earths. Even in a country like India, this is possible — we already recycle 97% of battery-grade minerals like cobalt, nickel, and lithium. The same infrastructure and expertise can be adapted for rare earths.
But for the long haul, the solution lies in global partnerships. India and other nations must build strong alliances with rare earth miners and refiners around the world, especially in Africa, Australia, Canada, and Southeast Asia. This means:
Creating a parallel, China-independent supply chain
Imposing tariffs on Chinese REE exports to encourage domestic investment
Ensuring all mining projects are ESG-compliant (environmental, social, governance) to sustain long-term growth
And most importantly, learning from success stories like Lynas, which should be the blueprint — or the Bible — for every nation looking to reclaim control.
Conclusion
Although they are at the bottom of the surface or the periodic table, these rare earth elements are shaping not only today but also tomorrow. The power balance of the world is now powered by them. If we don't want to just remain the consumers of global chains instead become the participants, we have to set up our game. For the time being, China seems to be controlling the joystick, and others are still downloading the software, including India, but things can rapidly change in favour of the rookies, because wars in the 21st century aren't fought merely with missiles but with the very elements used in building them.
By Saksham Jaiswal
Saksham Jaiswal is a dynamic and driven student pursuing a specialization in Business Global Operations at the prestigious Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC). With a rich background in the merchant navy as an officer, Saksham brings a unique perspective to global trade, economics, and resilience studies.
References- 1.https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/10/podcasts/the-daily/rare-earth-metals-china-trade-us.html
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