The US administration is criticizing Beijing for its mistake. It's about rare earth metals.

Beijing "made a grave mistake" by threatening to halt exports of rare earth elements, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told the British Financial Times on Friday. He assured the United States that it would secure alternative supplies of the minerals within two years.

Following a meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea on Thursday, Bessent said the two countries had reached a "balance" that would allow them to operate over the next 12 months.

The minister stated that the US "has compensatory measures," and that China's lead over the US in the rare earths sector will not last longer than 12 to 24 months. In his opinion, Beijing made a mistake by threatening to halt mineral exports. "It's one thing to put a gun on the table, but quite another to fire into the air," commented Bessent.

Reporting on the meeting in South Korea, he mentioned that President Trump had approached Xi, suggesting he would visit China in early 2026. The Chinese leader replied: "It's very cold in January and February, why not move it to April?"

The FT recalled that during the talks, China agreed, among other things, to allow American investors to take control of TikTok in the US. Bessent confirmed this, saying that "everything is already agreed on regarding permits, and we should see the transaction soon."

The politician stated that the US and China will sign the agreement in the coming week and expressed confidence that it will be maintained. "Naturally, there will be some difficulties (...), but I think we now have much better channels of communication," he emphasized.

Bessent said other countries have imposed tariffs on China or are planning to do so. "Our trade deficit with China has fallen by 25 percent this year. Chinese manufacturing activity has been shrinking for seven months now. Perhaps others will make similar decisions," he said.

From London Marta Zabłocka (PAP)

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