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On 8/21/25 18:32, Max Xam wrote:

Brazil Wanted Americas Help Mining Rare Earths. Then Came Tariffs.
Tensions between President Trump and Brazils leader could derail a
promising alliance to unlock the worlds second largest reserve of the minerals.
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An overhead view of a multicolored patch of land surrounded by forest.
A mine in Minacu, Goias state, Brazil, that produces rare earth elements, including neodymium, praseodymium, terbium and dysprosium. Credit... Eraldo Peres/Associated Press
Ana Ionova
By Ana Ionova
Ana Ionova spoke to mining experts, companies, diplomats and officials in Brazil, the United States and Australia. She reported from Brasilia and Rio de Janeiro.
Aug. 21, 2025, 5:01 a. m. ET
Leer en espanol
Tucked under layers of clay and rock, Brazil has a bounty that much of the world covets: millions of tons of rare earth minerals needed to build
drones and robots, electric cars and guided missiles.
For years Brazil and the United States have quietly discussed how American investment and assistance could help the South American country unlock
these vast reserves of rare earths, the worlds second largest.
But now, the diplomatic crisis between the Western Hemispheres two largest nations risks derailing years of U. S. efforts to secure access to
Brazilian rare earths.
By loosening Chinas grip on strategic minerals crucial to the economies and battlefields of the future, both nations stood to gain from such an
alliance, according to current Brazilian and former U. S. officials.
American support could help Brazil become a global powerhouse in the extraction and processing of rare earths. And Brazilian rare earths could reduce American dependence on China, which controls about 90 percent of
world supplies and has shown itself willing to withhold them.
The talks about this alliance, which have not been previously reported,
were at an early stage. Then, Brazils rare earths were suddenly thrust into the bitter trade dispute between the two countries that erupted last month. Ties between the Brazil and the United States frayed when President Trump targeted the country with 50 percent tariffs to help his political ally,
Jair Bolsonaro, the former Brazilian president, who is facing criminal charges for plotting a coup.
Just before tariffs were imposed on Brazil, the United States signaled that access to Brazils strategic minerals should be part of trade talks.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva snapped back, accusing the United
States of threatening his nations sovereignty.
No one lays a hand, Mr. Lula said last month, referring to Brazils critical minerals. This country belongs to the Brazilian people. Brazilian officials also made clear that they will now seek to explore tapping its rare earth deposits with other allies, like India.
.
Image
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil sitting at a chair in room filled with chairs.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil has snapped back at President Trumps verbal attacks on his country. Credit... Victor Moriyama for The New York Times
With Brazil, we were pushing an open door, said Jose Fernandez, a former
top official at the State Department. I dont know if this will backfire,
but it certainly will not help.
Brazil is believed to hold between 19 and 23 percent of global reserves of rare earths, a group of 17 elements needed to make powerful magnets used in
a range of products, from electric cars and wind turbines to missiles and fighter jets.
For decades, China, home to 40 percent of rare earth deposits, has
dominated global supply chains of the minerals, which are plentiful in the earths crust but difficult to extract and separate. The West has mostly
left to China the hard work of mining, processing and refining rare earths into magnets imported by the United States and other countries. For some
rare earths, China is virtually the only country able to separate and
process them.
But other countries have grown wary of Chinas chokehold. Beijing cut off supplies to Japan in 2010 and is now withholding some critical minerals and magnets from the United States in response to tariffs. To reduce its
reliance on China, the Pentagon has poured millions into a Las Vegas-based mining company, MP Materials, becoming its largest shareholder.
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Brazilhas emerged as perhaps the most promising challenger to Chinas monopoly. It has reserves of about 21 million tons, though it may be years away from producing significant amounts of the minerals.
Image
Tubes crossing a brown pool with a ramshackle structure nearby on a
hillside with trees.
A mine for rare earth metals near Longnan, in south-central China. China is the worlds leading supplier of rare earth minerals. Credit... Keith Bradsher/The New York Times
There is still a lot to be explored, to be studied, said Inacio Melo, director-president of the Brazilian Geological Survey. Brazil has enormous potential.
For now, just one Brazilian mine, partially backed by American investors,
is churning out small quantities of minerals, which still have to be
shipped to China for processing. But Brazil has ambitious plans to build a domestic supply chain spanning mines, processing plants and magnet
factories.
Our economics reporters based in New York, London, Brussels, Berlin, Hong Kong and Seoul are digging into every aspect of the tariffs causing global turmoil. They are joined by dozens of reporters writing about the effects
on everyday people.
Heres our latest reporting on tariffs and economic policy.
Until recently, the United States had been helping Brazil inch closer to
its goals. Biden administration officials made at least five visits to the country between 2022 and 2024, according to Mr. Fernandez, who participated in some of the meetings.
Brazils main focus in these discussions was securing technical assistance
and American investment, Mr. Fernandez said. Brazil was a very willing partner, he added.
During a State Department visit last year, U. S. officials appeared interested in Brazils first laboratory where rare earths will be made into magnets and its capacity to eventually supply the Pentagon, according to Eduardo Neves, a researcher at the facility who participated in the
meeting.
They wanted information from us about whether we are already selling
magnets, how long it will take to produce, he said. They seemed very interested.
Last year, American and British investors poured $150 million into Brazils first rare earths mine, Serra Verde, as part of an initiative backed by the U. S. government.
Image
Clusters of buildings sit on brown patches of land surrounded by trees.
The facilities of Serra Verde, a rare earths mine in Minacu, Brazil. If is the only such mine in Brazil, which hopes to greatly expand the industry. Credit... Eraldo Peres/Associated Press
In the months after Mr. Trump took office, the top U. S. diplomat in
Brazil, charge daffaires Gabriel Escobar, met with Brazils mining
association to discuss a possible partnership on rare earth minerals, according to Raul Jungmann, the group's president.
Then, in July, two weeks after Mr. Trump threatening Brazil with high tariffs, Mr. Escobar requested another meeting, according to Mr. Jungmann. The first time, he was more concerned with partnerships, Mr. Jungmann said. The second time, the tone was more insistent, he added. He made the United States interest in strategic critical minerals very clear, very explicit.
In Brazil, a country sensitive to foreign involvement in its resources,
after decades of booms and busts in commodities like rubber and sugar, U.
S. interest in rare earths made headlines and triggered anger and
suspicion.
Then, after the tariffs took effect and negotiations over a trade deal hit
a stalemate, some Brazilian officials struck a more conciliatory tone, signaling they were open to putting rare earths on the negotiating table. Trade talks between Brazil and the United States have since stalled, with Brazil accusing Mr. Trump of ignoring its attempts to negotiate and Mr.
Trump insisting the country drop its case against Mr. Bolsonaro, which many in Brazil see as central to safeguarding the nations democracy.
Last week, tensions escalated when Mr. Trump accused Brazil of being a horrible trading partner. Mr. Lula shot back, pointing out that his nation runs a trade deficit with the United States. Were still willing to
negotiate, but Brazil wont kneel before the United States.
Brazil now appears to be forging ahead largely without the United States.
It is studying its deposits with the help of a Spanish mapping firm and working toward improving its processing abilities through a public-private partnership backed by more than two dozen companies and research groups
from around the world.
Image
Jars with labels describing their content.
Jars containing rare earth minerals produced by Lynas, an Australian mining company. Credit... Melanie Burton/Reuters
Establishing a supply chain outside of China is quite important for most Western nations right now, said John Prineas, executive chairman of Australia-based St. George Mining, which is developing a rare earths
project in Brazils Araxa region. Brazil has a potentially big role to play there. And were happy to be a part of it.
The tariffs on Brazil were softened by hundreds of exceptions, but rare earths were notably absent from the list.
That would make American firms reluctant to invest in the countrys rare earths, according to Sergio Fontanez, a former government adviser and chairman of the U. S. Export-Import Bank, a government export credit
agency.
Theres an opportunity there for us, Mr. Fontanez said. But what youre essentially creating now, he added, is an embargo for U. S. companies.

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