Toward Programme
Trump taps BHP and Rio Tinto to fix critical minerals gap - afr.com
Why it matters
The Trump administration's direct recruitment of Australia's major miners to address the Western critical-minerals gap signals strong US commitment to deepening resource-supply partnerships with Australia, reinforcing Pillar 1 (Resource Sovereignty) and Pillar 5 (Decoupling from China). This supports long-term Allied supply-chain resilience and reduces Australian vulnerability to US distancing or Chinese coercion via rare-earth/mineral leverage.
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