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U.S. Makes Another Rare-Earths Deal. But the Threat of Shortages Persists.

The U.S. Defense Department has signed a new supply agreement with Australian rare‑earths producer Lynas, marking the latest effort to secure critical minerals for national security. The deal is intended to diversify the U.S. supply chain away from China, which currently dominates rare‑earth processing. Lynas will provide a portion of its output, potentially up to 30,000 metric tons per year, to U.S. defense manufacturers. However, analysts warn that processing bottlenecks and limited domestic capacity keep the threat of shortages alive.