Defense and Aerospace Mineral Dependencies

Modern military platforms are among the most mineral-intensive manufactured products on Earth. A single F-35 Joint Strike Fighter requires approximately 920 pounds of rare earth materials, while a Virginia-class nuclear submarine uses tens of thousands of pounds of specialty alloys derived from strategic minerals. Understanding these dependencies is essential for assessing military readiness and supply chain resilience.

Titanium: The Backbone of Military Airframes

Titanium is arguably the most important structural metal in modern aerospace. Its exceptional strength-to-weight ratio, corrosion resistance, and ability to withstand extreme temperatures make it irreplaceable in airframe construction, jet engine components, and naval applications. The F-22 Raptor's airframe is approximately 39% titanium by structural weight, while the F-35 uses titanium extensively in its bulkheads, wing carry-through structures, and engine nacelles.

The supply chain for aerospace-grade titanium is alarmingly concentrated. Russia's VSMPO-AVISMA was historically the world's largest supplier of titanium sponge, providing significant quantities to both Boeing and Airbus. The geopolitical disruptions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine forced Western aerospace companies to rapidly diversify their titanium sourcing, turning to producers in Japan (Toho Titanium), Kazakhstan, and the United States (Titanium Metals Corporation). However, expanding titanium sponge production capacity is a multi-year endeavor requiring specialized facilities and the Kroll process, which is energy-intensive and technically demanding.

Beyond airframes, titanium is essential for naval applications including submarine hull components, shipboard heat exchangers, and desalination systems. The U.S. Navy's Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine program represents one of the largest single sources of demand for aerospace-grade titanium in the defense sector. Any sustained disruption to titanium supply would directly impact the production timelines of the most consequential strategic weapons platforms in the Western arsenal.

Rare Earth Elements: Precision Guidance and Electronic Warfare

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. The demand from these platforms alone represents a significant fraction of refined rare earth output.

China controls approximately 60% of global rare earth mining and over 85% of rare earth processing and separation capacity. This concentration became a strategic flashpoint in 2010 when China briefly restricted rare earth exports to Japan during a territorial dispute, and again in 2023 when China imposed export controls on gallium and germanium. 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.

Tungsten: Ammunition and Armor-Penetrating Munitions

Tungsten possesses the highest melting point of any metal (3,422 degrees Celsius) and exceptional density, making it critical for kinetic energy penetrators, armor-piercing ammunition, and high-temperature military applications. Tungsten carbide is used in armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS) rounds fired by main battle tanks, while tungsten heavy alloy is used in counterweights for missiles and in radiation shielding for military vehicles and equipment.

China produces approximately 80% of the world's tungsten, a dominance that has persisted for decades despite periodic efforts by Western governments to diversify. The only significant non-Chinese tungsten mines include operations in Vietnam, Russia, Bolivia, and a small number of projects under development in Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The Hemerdon mine in Devon, England, represents one of the few advanced tungsten projects in a NATO country, though it has faced repeated financial difficulties.

The military significance of tungsten was highlighted during the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, where demand for tungsten-based ammunition surged. The Department of Defense identified tungsten as a material requiring urgent attention in its 2022 report to Congress on strategic and critical materials stockpile requirements, recommending significant new acquisitions to hedge against potential supply disruptions from Chinese export restrictions.

Cobalt: Jet Engines and Superalloys

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.

Approximately 70% of the world's cobalt is mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where political instability, artisanal mining concerns, and growing Chinese ownership of major mines create persistent supply 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 the 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.

Additional Critical Dependencies

Beryllium in Satellite and Missile Systems

Beryllium's unique combination of low density, high stiffness, and thermal stability makes it essential for satellite optical systems, missile guidance platforms, and aerospace structural components. The James Webb Space Telescope's primary mirror is made of beryllium, and the material is used in the inertial navigation systems of intercontinental ballistic missiles. The United States is one of only two significant producers of beryllium (alongside Kazakhstan), with Materion Corporation operating the sole Western primary processing facility in Elmore, Ohio.

Antimony in Ammunition and Flame Retardants

Antimony is alloyed with lead to harden bullets and shrapnel, and antimony trioxide is the dominant flame retardant synergist used in military textiles, vehicle interiors, and electronic enclosures. China and Tajikistan together account for over 80% of global antimony production. The U.S. defense establishment has identified antimony as one of the minerals with the most acute supply vulnerability, and Perpetua Resources' Stibnite Gold Project in Idaho, which contains one of the largest known antimony deposits in the United States, has received Defense Production Act funding to accelerate its development.

Gallium and Germanium in Semiconductors and Optics

Gallium arsenide and gallium nitride semiconductors are used in military radar systems, electronic warfare equipment, and satellite communications. Germanium is essential for infrared optics used in night vision devices, thermal imaging systems, and missile seekers. China's 2023 export controls on both materials sent shockwaves through the defense industrial base, as China produces approximately 80% of the world's gallium and 60% of its germanium. Alternative sources are being developed through byproduct recovery from aluminum and zinc refining in Canada, Japan, and Europe.

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.

The Department of Defense has estimated that certain munitions programs could face production delays of 12 to 24 months in the event of a sustained rare earth supply disruption, and that reconstituting a fully domestic supply chain for separation and processing of heavy rare earths would take seven to ten years. 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.