SONG Guoyou, LI Wenbo ( Fudan University)，Critical Minerals Competition between China and the United Statesand Its Impacts，Journal of Boundary and Ocean Studies，No.5，2024，pp.23-41

Abstract: Critical minerals have increasingly become a new issue in international relations due to theirimportant role in the field of national security and economy. The U. S. has been intensifying itscompetition over critical minerals with China in terms of definition, mining rights, and sanctions in recentyears. In order to gain a relative advantage in the competition, both countries have been accelerating theconstruction of a complete supply chain for critical minerals at home and actively expanding partnershipsabroad. However, the success of critical mineral policies of China and the United States depends not onlyon factors such as natural distribution, technology, consumption market and policy, but also on ideologyand national strategy. China has a slight advantage in the natural distribution of critical minerals and theconsumption market, while both China and the United States have their respective advantages in terms oftechnology and policy. Overall, subject to the geographic, functional, economic and political attributesof critical minerals, the U. S. cannot achieve fundamental decoupling in the full supply chain of criticalminerals from mineral sources, semi⁃finished products, to finished products between China and the US.The U. S. ⁃China critical minerals competition has had a significant negative impact on China and theU. S. , third parties, and the rest of world.

Key words: Critical minerals; Global Supply Chain; China⁃U. S. Competition; China⁃U. S. Cooperation