The race for electric vehicle materials
AxiosMAY 2022
China Bans Export of Rare Earths Tech
Image copyright: Kevin Frayer/Getty Images News [via Getty Images]
The Spin
Anti-China narrative
China is flexing its rare-earths muscle. The country has rarely shied away from leveraging its strengths toward its foreign policy or geostrategic goals. The communist nation dreams of dominating the global technosphere and It is now weaponizing rare earths to materialize that dream.
Pro-China narrative
There's no doubt that the rare-earths industry is an extremely polluting one. Over the years, China has borne the burden of meeting the world's demand for these important minerals — something the developed world is used to as it enjoys the fruits of the less developed world's dirty work. Rather than accusing Beijing of weaponizing rare earths, the West should acknowledge that this is its own making.