The contents of this article are written with authoritative materials and personal opinions. The source of the literature has been marked at the end of the article, so please know.
The United States can't sit still again, the supply of rare earths is blocked, and the entire high-tech industry chain is almost suffocated.
Rare earth is a raw material for chips, missiles, and aircraft parts. Without it, the entire industrial system will be "stuck". China is the world's largest supplier of rare earths.
When rare earth exports could not return to pre-tariff levels, the United States became very anxious.
At this time, U.S. Representative Mulenar stepped forward. As chairman of the House Select Committee on China, Publicly urging the Trump administration to use unconventional means to force concessions from China.
Three strong opinions were given, first of all Limit or cancel the rights of China airlines to land in the United States； Followed by Audit the export and maintenance services of commercial aircraft in ChinaFinally is Join allies to limit China's investment in aviation。
Mr. Mueller said that would let China know “that it will pay a price if it refuses to supply rare earth.”
As soon as he said this, it caused a big storm in Washington. The media said his suggestions were "unheard of" and some people feared that it would trigger a new trade war.
In his letter, Mr. Mueller also urged Mr. Trump “not to hesitate” to use aviation as a weapon of mutual counteraction.
Ironically, Trump hasn't replied until now.He knows better than anyone that once these three moves are implemented, it will not only be a matter between China and the United States, but will also be an earthquake for the entire global aviation system.
In fact, China has the initiative in rare earths. In October, China's Ministry of Commerce decided to restrict exports of rare earth products.。
The new regulations require that all rare earth extraction and processing and the export of magnet products require a strict approval process. As long as a product contains 0.1% of the rare earth raw materials produced in my country, it will be included in the control object.
This time it is a refined "technical defense line", the purpose of which is to block the United States from acquiring rare earths from third countries. Naturally, Washington is in a hurry, which means it has few alternatives to use.
Mueller’s proposals at the time were fierce, hoping to trade in the aviation industry in exchange for rare earth resources.
However, doing so may have a ripple effect.
The ban on the entry of Chinese flights will damage the business and tourism exchanges between the two countries, and will affect the status of foreign airlines when negotiating air rights with China.
European airlines have expressed concerns that if the U.S. government implements this policy, it will lead to increased costs on international routes and increased ticket prices.
More surprisingly, the U.S. government is also planning to add a new measure. China airlines are prohibited from flying to the United States through Russian airspace.
As a result, China's trans-Pacific routes have to be diverted, taking longer travel times and increasing fuel costs.
On the surface, it seems to be suppressing China's aviation industry, but it is not.Several U.S. companies will also be affected as routes change to re-apply for airspace rights and increase the operating burden.
People familiar with the industry said that the scheme of "killing a thousand enemies and damaging eight hundred" is difficult to be accepted by the aviation industry.
After Mullenar's letter was made public by the media, it also caused a lot of controversy in the United States.U.S. commentators called Mueller a “political operation” and criticized his suggestions as “irrealistic and irresponsible.”
The Global Times also made it clear that if this extreme-left recommendation was implemented, the Sino-American route would likely be completely interrupted, and China-American exchanges would also be forced to stagnate.
Trump’s silence about this is remarkable, because he is now in a rather delicate state. On the one hand, he wants to gain an advantage in Sino-US negotiations; on the other hand, this progress cannot make it go to naught.
The fourth round of China-US economic and trade talks had just ended when Mueller submitted the letter, and the two sides said they had achieved substantial results and were ready to issue a joint statement.
In fact, the United States is not without seeking an “alternative” solution.Since 2020, the U.S. Geological Survey has been promoting the mining of local rare earth mines and has established a "China supply chain" with Australia and Canada.
But the reality is very cruel, with U.S. rare-earth mineral resources mainly found in the Mantenpas mine in California. Although the reserves are large, there is no efficient separation extraction process.
In the end, it will still have to be sent back to China for processing. In other words, even if the United States digs the ore, it will not be able to make a "circle" and will still be handed over to China after all.
Worse, the U.S. wants to pull its allies together to put pressure on China, but repeatedly hits the wall.。
Trump has put pressure on the European Union, NATO and G7 countries to be consistent with the United States in trade policies and tax China.
But the EU is very cautious, and when Von der Leyen meets with Trump, he intends to avoid China and fear that Europe will be plunged into a new trade dispute.
Some countries have even publicly stated that they are unwilling to offend China for the economic interests of the United States。Japanese Finance Minister Katsumu Kato bluntly said that it is "difficult to operate" to tax China on the grounds of purchasing Russian oil.
America’s “solitary noise” has made Mueller’s “air blockade” a solitary political show.
At the same time, China's rare-earth control efforts are increasing, export approval, technical authorization, and trade tracking systems have become more and more strict, and the "rare earth stuck neck" is no longer empty talk, but has become a practical policy tool.
Beijing has not publicly declared a "cessation of confession", but by raising the threshold and formulating rules to convey a clear message to the outside world. Rare earth is not a bargaining chip that you can get easily. You can take it if you want and follow the rules.
American politics has long predicted this issue. Trump's campaign team has discussed how to solve the shortage of rare earths in closed-door meetings many times, but has never found an effective solution.
Sanctions, tax increases, pressure have all been tried, but it is useless, China will not give up, and the United States will not be able to forcibly tear its mouth.
Some have joked that rare earth has become the most quiet "hard power game" between China and the United States.
Looking back at Mullenar's letter, he probably knew himself that these three moves were just political declarations, not practical plans.
Why hasn't Trump responded? Because he understood that when he attacked, the one who would suffer the most was the United States.
The U.S. anxiety is the reality, it is almost no way to go, China's hand moves the knife too hard to fear the high-tech industry breaks the source of raw materials, but if it is not, it will be approved "compromise against China".
Mulenar represents some extreme voices, but the White House must know that if there is a real fight, The aircraft can’t fly is just the beginning, and the entire industry chain will be “capped to the neck.”
The current situation is no longer just a trade dispute, but a competition for control of resources; China uses a set of policies to maintain its scarce rare earth deposits, while the United States uses political power to counter it.
Both sides were calculating, but no one dared to make a move first.
For China, rare earths are the trump card; For the United States, how to prevent the hole card from becoming a "dead end" is the real test.
References:
The U.S. Congressman's Idea: Don't Give Rare Earth, Don't Let Chinese Flights Land 2025-09-19 08:29 PM Source: Observer Network
Decision of the Ministry of Commerce to Implement Export Controls on Rare-Earth-Related Technologies 2025-10-09 09:04 Sources: Securities Times
Professor at Warton Business School: The U.S. Failure to Establish Rare-Earth Reserves is a Scandal 2025-10-13 23:01 PM