Defense and Aerospace Mineral Dependencies

Rare earth elements (REEs) are a group of 17 chemically similar metals that are indispensable to advanced defense electronics. Neodymium and samarium are used to produce the permanent magnets found in precision-guided munitions, satellite communication systems, and the electric motors that actuate missile fins and aircraft control surfaces. Europium and terbium enable the phosphors used in military display systems and targeting screens. Yttrium is essential for the yttrium-aluminum-garnet (YAG) crystals used in military laser rangefinders and target designators.

The Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), one of the most widely used precision weapons in NATO arsenals, relies on rare earth permanent magnets in its tail kit guidance system. The production of a single DDG-51 Arleigh Burke-class destroyer requires approximately 5,200 pounds of rare earth materials for its Aegis combat system, SPY radar arrays, and various electronic warfare suites.

Export restriction history: China briefly restricted rare earth exports to Japan during a 2010 territorial dispute, and imposed export controls on gallium and germanium in 2023. These events exposed the fragility of Western dependence on Chinese processing.

Efforts to build alternative processing capacity in the United States, Australia, and Europe through facilities like the MP Materials Mountain Pass operation and Lynas Rare Earths' Kalgoorlie plant are progressing but remain years away from matching China's integrated supply chain at scale.

Cobalt is a critical constituent of the nickel-based and cobalt-based superalloys used in the hot sections of military jet engines. These superalloys must withstand sustained temperatures exceeding 1,000 degrees Celsius while maintaining structural integrity under extreme centrifugal forces. The turbine blades, combustion chambers, and afterburner components of engines like the Pratt & Whitney F135 (powering the F-35) and the General Electric F110 (powering the F-16) depend on cobalt-containing alloys such as Waspaloy, Haynes 188, and MAR-M 509.

Ownership risk: Chinese companies, including CMOC Group and China Molybdenum, have acquired controlling stakes in several of the DRC's largest cobalt operations, giving Chinese entities significant influence over 70% of global cobalt supply even at the mine site level.

Beyond jet engines, cobalt is essential for the lithium-ion batteries used in military communications equipment, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and portable electronics deployed in the field. As the U.S. military pursues electrification of its tactical vehicle fleet and expands its use of autonomous systems, cobalt demand from defense applications is projected to grow significantly through the 2030s.

Supply Disruption Risks to Military Readiness

The concentration of strategic mineral supply chains in a small number of countries, many of which are geopolitical competitors or located in unstable regions, represents a systemic vulnerability to Western military readiness. A conflict scenario in the Indo-Pacific, for example, could simultaneously disrupt access to Chinese rare earths, tungsten, gallium, and germanium while also cutting sea lanes that carry cobalt from the DRC and manganese from South Africa.

These timelines are incompatible with the rapid surge production that modern conflict scenarios demand, underscoring the need for robust strategic reserves, diversified sourcing, and sustained investment in domestic and allied processing capacity.

Mitigating these risks requires a whole-of-government approach that integrates defense procurement, trade policy, mining permitting, and international cooperation. Allied mineral security agreements, such as those established through the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) involving the United States, the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and other partner nations, represent a critical step toward building the resilient supply chains that 21st-century defense requires.