Another thing we're dependent on China for: Rare Earth Elements
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https://asc.army.mil/web/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/ACQ_writing_awards_2019.pdf
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Rare Earth Elements: A Vital Supply Chain at Risk
Most advanced military technology depends on rare earth elements, or REEs. REEs help Army systems such as night- vision goggles, precision-guided weapons, and communica- tions equipment perform with
reduced size, weight, and energy consumption. They also provide greater system efficiency and thermal stability.2These features provide portability and field endurance, advantages that are vitally important to the Army and to the other military services. However, assured access to REE materials is currently at risk, placing the entire
high-tech military supply chain in jeopardy.A report issued by the Department of Defense (DOD) Office of Inspector General in 2014 concluded that the office responsible for forecasting for the strategic stock- pile lacked a comprehensive and reliable approach to assessing both REE supply and demand. Two years later, a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report expressed concerns regarding REE supply risks, and called for a more comprehensive approach.
…
From the 1960s to the 1980s, the United States led the global production of REEs. Eventually, China’s labor cost advantages, less demanding environmental rules, and sites with commercially exploitable concentrations of REEs caused world production to shift almost completely to China.6 This was exacerbated by a “laissez-faire” approach to long-term rare earth procurement strategies.
China now produces 100% of the “heavy” REEs and nearly all of the “light” REEs. Development of known reserves in other countries has been hampered by logistical and investment hurdles, as well as the environ- mental and technical challenges of mining, extracting, and refining REEs.
The only remaining American REE mining operation now sends its ore to China for processing.7 In recent years, Chinese firms have purchased key U.S. magnet manufacturers, appropriated their technologies, estab- lished production in China, and discontinued the U.S. operations.8 China has also reduced the sale of its REEs to other nations, not only because of concerns about resource depletion, but also because of its national policy of shifting from the sale of commodities to the sale of higher-value finished goods. -
Oz has 'em too though, right?
