Washington: The United States and Australia have signed a landmark agreement on rare earth and critical minerals, aiming to secure supply chains and reduce reliance on China.
US President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signed the deal at the White House after months of negotiations. The agreement marks a major step in deepening economic and strategic cooperation between the two long-standing allies.
Under the pact, both countries will each invest $1 billion over the next six months to develop mining and processing projects. The agreement also sets a minimum price floor for critical minerals. Albanese said the deal would unlock an $8.5 billion investment pipeline that is ‘ready to go.’
Trump said the partnership was the result of four or five months of solid work and confirmed that broader talks would include trade, defence, and submarine cooperation. “We’re moving full steam ahead,” he said. “There shouldn’t be any more clarifications — we’re building.”
.@POTUS meets with Australian Prime Minister @AlboMP: “We’re going to be here to talk about lots of different things… we are discussing critical minerals, and rare earths, and we’re going to be signing an agreement that’s been negotiated over a period of 4 or 5 months.” pic.twitter.com/1wDJhLTmIm
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) October 20, 2025
The deal comes as both nations work to strengthen the AUKUS defence pact with the United Kingdom. The leaders discussed the $239 billion submarine agreement first reached in 2023 under then-President Joe Biden, in which Australia will purchase US-built nuclear-powered submarines before jointly developing a new class with Britain.
US Navy Secretary John Phelan said both sides were refining the framework to address earlier ambiguities, while Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles assured last week that the project was on track. Australia is also investing $2 billion this year to expand submarine production capacity at US shipyards and will begin maintaining US Virginia-class submarines at its Indian Ocean naval base from 2027.
The meeting follows a 10-month delay since Trump took office, a gap that had stirred concern in Canberra amid Washington’s calls for greater defence spending by its allies.
President Donald J. Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese sign a landmark critical minerals agreement to secure vital natural resources and strengthen the U.S.-Australia alliance. 🇺🇸🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/4mUz15UGwp
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) October 20, 2025
Beyond defence, the rare earth deal underscores growing urgency among Western nations to diversify supply chains for materials vital to modern technology, including electric vehicles, aircraft engines, and military radar systems.
China, which holds the world’s largest reserves and controls most of the processing capacity, recently tightened export controls on these minerals, prompting concern in Washington and other capitals.
Australia, rich in rare earth resources, has positioned itself as a key supplier for allied nations. Officials said Canberra is open to offering shares in its planned strategic reserve of critical minerals to partners such as Britain and the US to enhance shared resilience.
