Beyond Rare Earths: Why the West’s Supply Chain Problem Is Bigger Than China
From Foreign Press Podcast by Foreign Press USA
January 27, 2026 · 58 min
About this episode
The episode discusses the broader implications of supply chain vulnerabilities beyond rare earth minerals, emphasizing economic security in a fragmented geopolitical landscape.
Western governments are racing to loosen China’s grip on rare earth minerals — but is that strategy too narrow to work? In this episode, Hinrich Foundation Senior Research Fellow Stewart Paterson explains based on his research why special interventions and short-term fixes won’t solve deeper supply-chain vulnerabilities . Drawing lessons from the Russia–Ukraine war, he highlights how many critical technologies depend on industrial processes the West no longer produces at scale. What does real resilience look like when global trade is weaponized? And how can allied nations rebuild capacity without turning inward? The conversation looks beyond rare earths to the broader question of economic security in an era of geopolitical fragmentation. Paterson spoke to Roseanne Gerin, a veteran journalist with more than 25 years of experience and former editor at Radio Free Asia in Washington. This episode was produced in partnership with the Hinrich Foundation . AFPC-USA is solely responsible for the content of this episode.
People in this episode
Host: Roseanne Gerin
Guest: Stewart Paterson
Topics covered
- supply chain
- rare earth minerals
- economic security
- geopolitical fragmentation
- industrial processes
- global trade
Keywords
- rare earths
- supply chain
- China
- economic security
- geopolitical fragmentation
- industrial processes
- Russia-Ukraine war
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Hinrich Foundation, Foreign Press USA
Places: China, Russia, Ukraine, Washington
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