Amid global race, Putin orders plan for extraction of rare earths

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday ordered the Russian Cabinet to draw up a road map for the extraction of rare earth minerals by December 1.

In a list of tasks for ministers published on the Kremlin website, Putin also ordered the Cabinet to take measures to develop transport links at Russia’s borders with China and North Korea. Rare earths — used in smartphones, electric vehicles and weapons systems — have taken on vital strategic importance in international trade.

In April, US President Donald Trump signed a deal with Ukraine that will give the US preferential access to new Ukrainian minerals deals and fund investment in the country’s reconstruction.

Russia says it is also interested in partnering with the US on rare earth projects, but prospects have been held up by a lack of progress towards ending the war in Ukraine.

China, the dominant producer of rare earths, has hit back at US tariffs this year by placing restrictions on their export. Putin’s order — a summary of action points from a Far Eastern Economic Forum he attended in Vladivostok in September — did not go into detail about Russia’s rare earths plan.

Among other points, he also instructed the government to develop “multimodal transport and logistics centres” on the Chinese and North Korean borders. Putin said the locations should include two existing railway bridges linking Russia and China and a planned new bridge to North Korea, which he said must be commissioned in 2026.

Both of Russia’s far eastern neighbours have deepened economic ties with Moscow since Western countries imposed sanctions on it over its war in Ukraine.