White House Delays Critical Mineral Tariffs for 180-Day Negotiation Window
Why the President’s new critical minerals proclamation offers a six-month diplomatic pause instead of the immediate price floors the mining industry demanded.
If you were hoping the United States would finally slam the gavel on critical mineral imports this week, you might want to pour yourself another cup of coffee. President Donald Trump’s latest proclamation on supply chain security lands with the heavy thud of a Section 232 investigation but leaves the industry with a directive that feels less like an airstrike and more like a calendar invite.
The White House officially declared on January 14 that our reliance on foreign processed critical minerals constitutes a national security threat. The diagnosis is terrifyingly specific: the U.S. is 100 percent net-import reliant for 12 critical minerals and over 50 percent reliant for another 29. From the guidance systems in fighter jets to the magnets in EV motors, the supply chain is brittle, foreign-owned, and prone to weaponization. The administration’s solution to this existential crisis? We are going to spend the next six months talking about it.

