Lessons in Geochemistry

Syed Akbaruddin
Feb 23, 2026 | 20:49 IST
Image: AI

Critical minerals like lithium and neodymium are key to modern industry, so Chinese stranglehold on supply concerns every major economy. India’s recent pact with Brazil, and engagement with US-led FORGE can help it secure supplies



Critical minerals are the new reality of power. They sit behind the clean energy transition, electric mobility, advanced electronics, AI and modern defence systems. They also enable something less visible: the ability to slow another country’s industrial momentum without ever declaring a sanction. Tariffs can be bargained down. Mineral constraints cannot.
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