Trump administration launches FORGE minerals initiative

The Donald Trump administration on Tuesday formally announced the launch of the FORGE initiative, a trade bloc aimed at countering China in the race to secure critical minerals. FORGE, short for the Forum on Resource Geostrategic Engagement, is designed to bring together allied and partner nations, with Washington seeking participation from 55 countries. The initiative targets China, which controls more than 90 percent of global rare earth refining capacity, and represents a de facto effort by the United States to reorganize the global critical minerals supply chain around friendly economies. Strong resistance from Beijing is widely expected. For South Korea, sustained participation could help secure stable access to key resources, but it also carries the risk of retaliatory export restrictions by China.

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance chaired a ministerial-level meeting on critical minerals at the State Department in Washington, saying the Trump administration was proposing concrete mechanisms to restore competitiveness and balance in the global critical minerals market. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States had become overly reliant on a single actor that dominates mineral supply chains. Both officials made clear that the objectives of the FORGE initiative are directly aimed at reducing China’s control over rare earths. Earlier, the Trump administration also announced a domestic critical minerals stockpiling plan known as Project Vault, intended to strengthen supply security for U.S. industries.

Vance and Rubio urged participating countries to join the initiative without delay. South Korea, which previously served as chair of the Minerals Security Partnership, the predecessor to FORGE, is expected to assume the chairmanship of the new initiative through June. South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said it plans to actively promote the stability and diversification of global critical minerals supply chains by expanding cooperation with the Group of Seven, FORGE member countries and major producers of critical minerals.

Despite this, South Korea has yet to sign a memorandum of understanding on critical minerals supply chain security proposed by the United States in connection with the meeting. A senior South Korean government official said the proposal remains under review, noting that relations with China must also be taken into consideration. As the Trump administration seeks to reduce reliance on China for rare earths and other critical minerals by reorganizing supply chains around allies, participation in the initiative carries the risk of provoking a response from Beijing.


Jin-Woo Shin niceshin@donga.com