G7 Summit: Ashwini Vaishnaw arrives in Washington for Critical Minerals Ministerial Meet

Union Minister for Railways, Information & Broadcasting, and Electronics & Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw has arrived in Washington to participate in the G7 Critical Minerals Ministerial Meeting scheduled for January 12, a key gathering aimed at securing global supply chains for strategic resources. 

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Vaishnaw said, “Arrived in Washington, DC. Will participate in the Critical Minerals Ministerial Meeting tomorrow. Secure critical mineral supply chains are vital for our goal of Viksit Bharat.” 

Vaishnaw’s participation follows recent indications from US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who had said on January 9 that Australia and several other countries, including India, would join a meeting of G7 finance ministers being hosted in Washington to discuss critical minerals.

Bessent noted that he had been pushing for a focused dialogue on the issue since the G7 leaders’ summit last summer, with finance ministers having already held a virtual meeting in December. 

The Group of Seven comprises the United States, Britain, Japan, France, Germany, Italy and Canada, along with the European Union. Many of these economies are heavily dependent on China for rare earths and other critical minerals. In June last year, the bloc agreed on an action plan to strengthen supply chains and enhance economic resilience. 

Critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt, graphite, copper and rare earth elements are essential for defence systems, semiconductors, renewable energy technologies, electric vehicle batteries and advanced manufacturing. According to the International Energy Agency, China currently dominates the global refining capacity for these minerals, controlling between 47% and 87% across key materials. 

Western nations have been working to reduce their reliance on China, particularly after Beijing imposed strict export controls on certain rare earths. In October, Australia signed an agreement with the United States aimed at countering China’s dominance, featuring an $8.5 billion project pipeline and leveraging Australia’s proposed strategic mineral reserve to supply disruption-prone metals such as lithium and rare earths.