Myanmar Lobbies Washington to Invest in Its Rare Earths, Though the Junta Does Not Control the Main Mines
Reuters reported on November 10 that the Washington lobbying firm DCI Group published a newsletter on November 9 on behalf of Myanmar's Ministry of Information, urging the United States to treat Myanmar as a critical minerals priority and to rapidly boost investment in the country's rare-earth mines, calling minerals the natural place for a deepening relationship to grow.
Myanmar is one of the world's main sources of heavy rare earths, and most of its output is shipped to China for processing. Reuters cited an estimate that Myanmar supplied about $1.4 billion worth of rare earths to China in 2023, accounting for most of China's feedstock, while China produces about 90 percent of the world's rare-earth magnets. A recent U.S. State Department strategy document aims to secure at least three major commercial or investment deals valued above $5 million each for U.S. companies in Myanmar.
Reuters noted, however, that the main mining areas are mostly not under the direct control of Myanmar's military-led government: the Chipwi and Pangwa area of Kachin State accounts for about 80 percent of the country's rare-earth mines, and the Kachin Independence Army seized control of that mining area from military-aligned militias in October 2024. Nearly all rare earths mined in Myanmar are still trucked to China for processing. DCI Group's agreement with the Ministry of Information, signed on July 31, 2025, is worth $3 million a year and was registered as public-affairs work to rebuild U.S.-Myanmar relations with a focus on trade, natural resources and humanitarian relief. The State Department did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment.
Source: Reuters
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：缅甸军方领导人敏昂莱（资料图）。图：俄罗斯国防部，CC BY 4.0，经维基共享资源 / Myanmar's military leader Min Aung Hlaing (file photo). Photo by the Russian Ministry of Defence, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
