The Competition of Critical Minerals in the Arctic and China's Response
Critical minerals are mineral resources that are vital to national economic development,indispen-sable to strategic emerging industries,and exposed to supply risks.In the context of the dual carbon targets and resource security,the Arctic region is rich in critical mineral resources,and it thus has become the fro-ntline of the great power rivalry for all stakeholders.Driven by the triple factors of energy transformation,the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the Sino-US strategic competition,the U.S.-Europe alliance is building a safe and stable Arctic critical mineral industry chain.It promotes synergistic cooperation in the fields of in-vestments,technology and market,and constructs a transatlantic camp that features alliance,regionalization and de-sinicization.As the U.S.-Europe alliance intensifies its layout in the Arctic,the re-source landscape of the Arctic is becoming fragmented,and China is dragged into Arctic camp-based con-frontation.As an Arctic stakeholder,China has so far participated in 13 critical mineral projects in the Arc-tic,while most of them are subject to U.S.and Western constraints,and their operations are not optimistic.The Arctic region is an important overseas area for China's resource security.China could prioritize critical mineral cooperation with Russia and explore clean energy cooperation with Nordic countries,enhancing sup-ply chain resilience and accelerating energy transition.
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