Rare earth elements

The big mistake the US made was in the mining and processing of rare earth metals. The United States was the world's leading producer of rare earth elements (REEs) from the 1960s through the mid-1980s, largely driven by the Mountain Pass mine in California. This was closed down in 2002 because of environmental concerns. Meanwhile the Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping realized the importance of these metals and famously said, The Middle East has oil, China has rare earth. After a series of bankruptcies, MP Materials acquired the California site in 2017 and is now mining and processing rare earths. Over the past 30 years China continued its production without any environmental concerns and today mines 65% of all rare earths and processes 90% of the world supply. The US is now scrambling to catch up and China is using their rare earths as a bargaining chip in negotiations with the US.