The United States and its allies are weaponizing their balance sheets to secure the physical inputs of the future economy. American firm Virtus Minerals’ acquisition of the Chemaf cobalt and copper mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo—heavily coordinated by the US State Department—demonstrates a ruthless, necessary pivot toward mineral imperialism.

Concurrently, the US Export-Import Bank’s proposed $2.7 billion loan for Perpetua Resources’ Idaho gold-antimony project, alongside the judicial defense of ioneer’s Nevada lithium mine, signals total domestic reshoring of supply chains. By underwriting Western mining projects, formalizing rare earth pacts with Japan and France, and securing 10-year off-take agreements like Australia’s Metallium deal, global capital is bypassing Chinese price manipulation. This deliberate integration of state policy and private equity establishes border-adjusted supply chains that will dominate the clean energy and aerospace hardware markets for the next century.