DR Congo and USA Initiate Talks Over Minerals-for-Security Deal
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the United States of America (USA) have initiated ‘exploratory talks’ over access to #CriticalMinerals in exchange for military support in a bid to jugulate the rebel movement.
A couple of weeks ago, DRC President Felix Tshisekedi stated that the Trump administration has expressed interest in the Congolese rich mining resources. Indeed, DRC produces a substantial of the world’s #cobalt, #copper and #tantalum from #coltan.
At the same time, he called it ‘an absolute scandal’ that the European Union (EU) for colluding with Rwanda to in ‘the theft and looing of minerals’ from DRC. He accused the EU for having struck a shady deal with Rwanda for the supply of plundered minerals worth nearly USD one billion.
Unfortunately, most of the mineral-rich regions in eastern DRC are under control of the rebel group M23. The conflict minerals are smuggled to neighboring Rwanda for export, earning a handsome profit for the rebels to finance their military operations. Needless to say, the traffic of minerals has been a source of tension between DRC and Rwanda.
In a letter to US State Secretary Marco Rubio, Congolese Senator Pierre Kalambayi proposed granting US companies mining rights in exchange for military support in terms of training and equipment in order to fight the rebels.
“There is a desire for us to diversify our partners. We have almost daily exchanges with the US over the minerals-for-security deal,” stated the Congolese spokesperson Patrick Muyaya. Seemingly on the same wavelength, the US views this as an opportunity to chip away China’s dominance in the Congolese mining sector.
“The DRC has a significant share of the world’s most #CriticalMinerals needed for advanced technologies. The United States is open to discussing partnerships in this sector that align with the #AmericaFirst program of the Trump administration.”
US State Department Spokesperson
In a related move, the previous Biden administration made it a central part of its ‘Pivot Back to Africa’ agenda to upgrade the #LobitoCorridor in a race to the Critical Minerals in DRC. With the new Trump administration, the search for Critical Minerals has been extended to Greenland and Ukraine, and it remains unclear how the pieces of the mineral puzzle will fall into place.