India and the US have held talks in Washington to build resilient and secure supply chains for critical minerals.
On 12 January 2026, a high-level ministerial summit convened in Washington to address the urgent need for stable and diversified global supply chains for essential minerals.
India participated prominently in these discussions, which were chaired by United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. The primary objective of the meeting was to establish a more robust framework for sourcing the rare earth elements and minerals that underpin modern technology and industrial output.
Ashwini Vaishnaw highlighted that creating secure corridors is a fundamental requirement for the expansion of the domestic electronics and manufacturing industries. The dialogue focused on the vulnerability of current global networks, which are often concentrated in specific geographical regions, making them susceptible to political or economic interference.
The meeting highlighted that the resilience of India’s fast-growing manufacturing and electronics sectors is now inextricably linked to secure mineral corridors. By participating in this US-led initiative, India is positioning itself as a “trusted partner” in global value chains. This collaboration is expected to lead to:
- Cooperation on advanced refining and recycling technologies to extract high-quality minerals from waste products.
- Joint funding for new projects that secure the long-term availability of rare earth elements and permanent magnets.
- Support for domestic schemes, such as the ₹7,280 crore initiative for rare earth magnets, which aims to build a full-chain manufacturing capacity within India.
For India, these supply chain enhancements are viewed as vital components of the long-term national development strategy, ensuring that the production of semiconductors, electric vehicle batteries, and renewable energy hardware remains uninterrupted. The participants agreed that international cooperation is the only viable method to fix existing gaps in the market and ensure that the flow of these materials remains resilient against future shocks.
By establishing a coalition of allied economies, the initiative seeks to foster a more competitive and balanced marketplace. This meeting serves as a precursor to broader technological cooperation, with the consensus being that economic prosperity in the coming decade will be dictated by the agility and security of these critical resource networks. India’s active involvement signals a shift towards proactive participation in shaping the rules of global resource management.
SOURCE – TIMES OF INDIA
