Eyes on Africa, Washington seeks rare earth minerals deal with DRC: FT
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The US is in early talks with the Democratic Republic of the Congo to secure access to its vast mineral reserves in exchange for security support.
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An artisanal miner carries a sack of ore at the Shabara artisanal mine near Kolwezi, DRC, on Oct. 12, 2022. (AFP)
The United States is considering a deal with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to get access to its natural riches in exchange for American security support, the Financial Times reported.
In January, violence erupted in the country's resource-rich eastern provinces, with militants from the M23 group seizing control of several strategic cities. Last month, Prime Minister Judith Suminwa estimated that the violence had claimed 7,000 lives.
The DRC has often accused neighboring Rwanda of supporting the extremists, a charge supported by the West.
On Saturday, the FT reported anonymous sources as claiming that US-DRC conversations regarding a prospective mineral transaction had lately intensified, "although several obstacles remain" and are "at a relatively early stage."
Last month, Tina Salama, a spokesperson for DRC President Felix Tshisekedi, wrote on X that Kinshasa "invites the USA, whose companies source strategic raw materials from Rwanda, materials looted from the DRC and smuggled to Rwanda while our populations are massacred, to purchase them directly from us, the rightful owners." Rwanda has denied all involvement in mineral smuggling.
Prior to that, DRC Senator Pierre Kanda Kalambayi wrote to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, "The US is well-positioned to forge an enduring partnership with the DRC, a nation that possesses over $24 trillion in untapped reserves of critical minerals."
Among the resources highlighted are cobalt, which is particularly valuable in the aerospace and military industries, as well as lithium, tantalum, and uranium.
Kinshasa would expect Washington to increase military collaboration, as well as efforts to train and equip the DRC military, Kalambayi noted.
Since taking office in January, US President Donald Trump has stated an interest in acquiring access to critical mineral reserves abroad, particularly in Greenland and Ukraine.
A mining agreement with Kiev was scheduled to be inked last week. However, a heated argument between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Trump at the White House put the process on pause.
