G7 on Guard Against China's Mineral Export Restrictions

Tokyo - The trade ministers of the Group of Seven advanced economies, or G7, on Wednesday (6/5), stated that their governments are prepared to reject acts of “economic coercion” in disguise, referring to China’s control over exports of critical minerals.

Following the ministers’ meeting in Paris, French Foreign Trade Minister Nicolas Forissier said the G7 summit will be held in mid-June with the main agenda of strengthening the supply chains for those critical mineral commodities.

In France, there are ongoing concerns about China’s dominance in the rare earth metals market, which are typically used in semiconductor manufacturing.

Akazawa noted that his counterparts from several G7 members also expressed concerns about the possibility of tighter export controls, which China has imposed on Japan and which could extend to other countries.

In an official statement, the G7 ministers have serious concerns regarding economic coercion, including through arbitrary export restrictions that could cause supply chain disruptions.

Therefore, the G7 ministers stated they will collaborate to ensure that efforts or threats to weaponise economic dependencies will fail.

Also attending the meeting was the US Trade Representative, Jamieson Greer.

Source: Kyodo