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Recent news that China plans to ban the sale of critical minerals to the United States sends chills down the spines of American manufacturers and investors and threatens to cost the U.S. economy billions of dollars. There is. This presents a choice for America. Will we take control of our economic future and enjoy the wealth of resources literally at our feet, or will we turn upside down and let adversaries like China control our economic and national security trajectory in the 21st century? Will it be allowed?
As explained in recent reports, China has announced an export ban on gallium, germanium, and antimony. These minerals are essential in the production of electric vehicles, renewable energy sources, and defense technologies such as computers, smartphones, and radar systems, just to name a few. In other words, these minerals are the key to competing in the future economy. China has them, but they won't export them anymore, and unless we step up and seize this opportunity, our economy will be at a disadvantage.
We are currently living in an era of economic transformation not seen since the last industrial revolution. Over the past three decades, the global economy has rapidly become digital. This means that minerals, such as those currently held hostage by China, are more important to both our prosperity and national security. And that's exactly why China doesn't want the rest of the world to have them.
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The fact of the matter is that the person who paid the piper can make that sound. This applies not only to the world economy, but also to politics and daily life. When the United States and its allies rely on bad actors and adversaries for what we need to drive our economy, we naturally end up with less prosperity, less security, and less freedom. As Governor of Alaska, I have a solution for America to address this problem.
An oil tanker docks at the Trans Alaska Pipeline Marine Terminal in Valdez, Alaska, on August 9, 2008. (Reuters/Lucas Jackson)
The Chinese Communist Party is not our ally, and it's time we start acting as such. Our current status as trading partners has been, for decades, an uneasy and unsustainable relationship of convenience that leaves us dependent on them for our economic well-being and the tools of daily life. We now fully understand the impact of letting people.
Fortunately, the United States is well-positioned for this moment, thanks to our northernmost state. Not only is Alaska rich in energy, but the state is also blessed with vast amounts of mineral wealth. All we have to do is take advantage of what is already available. Alaska is home to 49 of the 50 important minerals that China doesn't want us to have.
Unfortunately, our access to them as a nation is severely hampered by bad policy and misguided politics. For nearly four years, the Biden-Harris administration's “look but don't touch” approach to Alaska has been the key to the economic success we need from the jobs of the hard-working Americans we serve and from the American people as a whole. We have continued to steal materials.
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Some worry that access to these mineral resources will come at the expense of Alaska's wildlife and natural beauty, but I think these arguments are unreasonable. No one cares more about protecting America's last frontier than the men and women who live, hunt, and fish here. We can do both successfully, and have done so for centuries.
Thomas Jefferson once famously wrote that dependence “breeds obedience and baseness, suffocates the germs of virtue, and prepares instruments fit for the projects of ambition.” It's hard to disagree with Mr. Jefferson, given the fact that a simple ban on exports from the other side of the Pacific now threatens to seriously harm our economy. To compete in the 21st century, America needs critical minerals for consumer products and defense systems, and energy to power both. Our need for them never diminishes. If we want our children to inherit the prosperity and independence we cherish, it's time to stop looking overseas for strong American foundations and start looking north to Alaska.
