About this episode

The episode discusses China's dominance over rare earths and its implications for Western supply chains and industrial policy.

To discuss, we have Farrell Gregory, a researcher at the Foundation for American Innovation and winner of ChinaTalk’s Economic Security essay competition, and Joris Teer, a policy analyst at the EU Institute for Security Studies who authored Beijing’s critical raw material weapon – and how to dismantle it. Co-hosting is ChinaTalk’s Aqib Zakaria. Our conversation covers... China’s critical mineral weapon — How Beijing turned its dominance over rare earths into a tool of economic coercion and why the West is struggling to respond. 25 minerals that actually matter — Why policymakers should focus on the specific materials China can weaponize rather than spreading resources across broad critical mineral lists. Why subsidies alone won’t fix the problem — How China’s industrial policy, overcapacity, and ability to flood markets make it nearly impossible for Western supply chains to compete without coordinated action. Reshoring the industrial base — The tradeoffs behind rebuilding domestic capacity: higher end-product costs, environmental NIMBYism, skilled labor shortages, and the need for deeper US-European cooperation. The next resource race — How defense, AI, robotics, and energy…

People in this episode

Host: Aqib Zakaria

Guests: Farrell Gregory, Joris Teer

Topics covered

• rare earths
• economic coercion
• industrial policy
• supply chains
• critical materials
• US-European cooperation
• resource competition

Keywords

• rare earths
• China
• economic coercion
• supply chains
• industrial policy
• critical minerals
• US-Europe cooperation
• resource race

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Foundation for American Innovation, EU Institute for Security Studies

Places: Beijing

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