(DW Chinese) The Süddeutsche Zeitung published a commentary stating that even the world’s most powerful leader, Donald Trump, appears helpless regarding the rare earth issue. Like Germany and other countries, the U.S. is highly dependent on China for rare earths, which has placed them in a vulnerable position.

The commentary emphasizes that China is well aware of its monopolistic power and is willing to exploit it ruthlessly. In recent weeks, the U.S. has felt the pain of this dependency, as China's leadership used rare earths as a retaliatory weapon in the ongoing trade war, decreasing exports to the U.S. This caused panic among American companies, with Ford shutting down a factory due to a severe shortage of rare earth magnets.

Currently, as part of the latest U.S.-China agreement, China has indicated its willingness to restore rare earth supply. However, experts warn that this is not guaranteed and that future political incentives could lead to further supply disruptions. This serves as a significant lesson for Europe, as the continent's vulnerability is just as serious.

The article also points out that the rare earth issue is not a new development. Geopolitical experts had raised concerns about this dependency before the U.S.-China trade conflict escalated, as China holds a 90% market share in rare earth processing. Despite some attempts to extract and process rare earths outside of China, progress has been extremely slow.

Trump previously boasted about bringing industries back to the U.S., but in many sectors, this has proven meaningless as they still depend on Chinese supplies. The urgent need for both the U.S. and other nations is to reduce their reliance on China for rare earth production. As monopolistic power intoxicates Beijing, this recent agreement has not changed the fundamental dynamics.

After the recent U.S.-China meeting in London, Trump announced, "Deal done, China will resume rare earth exports to the U.S." The commentary in the Economic Daily raises the question of whether European companies can also benefit from this transaction, given that they have also suffered from China's restrictions on rare earth exports. German businesses are now very concerned: has the U.S. secured priority procurement rights for rare earth resources? What will Europe do next? Will Europe also need to engage in political negotiations with China for the supply of scarce raw materials and products? What compromises will China demand from Europe? The bitter reality is that raw materials from China are increasingly becoming tools for political leverage. Experts' long-repeated warnings have finally become reality. The urgent task now is for the German federal government and industry to draw the right conclusions: China is not a reliable partner. In Beijing's view, dependency represents a soft underbelly that can be exploited.