U.S. to Pursue Critical Minerals Trade Agreement

The U.S. announced recently efforts toward the negotiation of a plurilateral agreement on trade in critical minerals.

At a Feb. 4 meeting in Washington, D.C., Vice President J.D. Vance urged representatives from more than 50 countries to join an effort to create “a preferential trade zone for critical minerals.” Vance said this initiative “will establish reference prices for critical minerals at each stage of production” that “will operate as a floor” and will be “maintained through adjustable tariffs.” Vance added that these prices would remain consistent with the goal of eventually creating “diverse centers of production, stable investment conditions, and supply chains that are immune” to external disruptions.

It appears that the envisioned trade zone would be created via a plurilateral agreement on trade in critical minerals that also includes provisions such as regulatory standards for mining, processing, or trade in critical minerals; coordinated rapid responses to prevent disruptions and crises in critical minerals supply chains; and coordinated stockpiling.

The U.S. advanced this initiative with the Feb. 4 announcement of what the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative called a “first-of-its-kind” action plan under which the U.S. and Mexico will work over the next 60 days to develop coordinated trade policies and mechanisms that mitigate critical mineral supply chain vulnerabilities. This work will include identifying specific critical minerals of interest, exploring border-adjusted price floors for critical minerals imports, and consulting on how price floors may be incorporated in the plurilateral agreement. The two countries will also identify specific mining, processing, and manufacturing projects of mutual interest in the U.S., Mexico, or third countries and prioritize financing and other policy support for those projects.

Also on Feb. 4 USTR announced its intent to develop similar action plans with the European Union and Japan. Toward that end the U.S. signed a critical minerals framework agreement with Japan in October 2025 and intends to conclude a memorandum of understanding with the EU within the next 30 days. The State Department said that on Feb. 4 the U.S. signed new frameworks or MOUs with Argentina, the Cook Islands, Ecuador, Guinea, Morocco, Paraguay, Peru, the Philippines, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and Uzbekistan. This follows the signing of ten other frameworks or MOUs in the past five months and the completion of negotiations on such agreements with 17 other countries.