Yesterday’s Washington Examiner reported that because of new environmental regulations and declining National Defense Stockpile inventories, the United States is importing 43 percent of minerals like lithium and bismuth from China. The article also notes that the U. S. national security industry is 90 to 100 percent dependent on foreign suppliers for those minerals. The United States is also at least 50 percent dependent on foreign imports for 43 minerals. Obviously, this is as much a threat to national security as our dependence on foreign oil.

The article concludes:

“The U.S. government desperately needs a coherent national mineral access strategy,” said Daniel McGroarty, President of the American Resources Policy Network. “We are acutely dependent on foreign supplies of non-fuel minerals and metals that are vital to commercial manufacturing and advanced weapons systems. Our exposure to potential supply disruptions is a profound national security threat.”