Thursday, May 30, 2019

Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- May 30, 2019

Miners are seen at the Bayan Obo mine containing rare earth minerals, in Inner Mongolia, China July 16, 2011. Stringer, Reuters

Yun Li, CNBC: Here’s why China’s trade war threat to restrict rare earth minerals is so serious

* Rare earth minerals are commonly used in high-tech devices, automotives, clean energy and defense.
* About 35% of global reserves are in China, the most in the world, and the country is a mining machine, producing 70% of total rare earths in 2018.
* U.S. consumption of rare earth compounds and metals relies heavily on imports, which rose to $160 million in 2018. Eighty percent were from China.

China’s threat to curb exports of rare earth minerals to the United States could move the needle in an escalating trade war as the world’s two largest economies continue to jockey for leverage.

The official newspaper of the Communist Party of China explicitly warned the U.S. on Wednesday that China would cut off rare earth minerals as a countermeasure in the escalated trade battle.

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Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- May 30, 2019

Donald Trump has a friend in Japan, even as the trade war puts US alliances to the test -- Anthony Rowley, SCMP

US 'maximum pressure' on Iran is empowering Russia in Syria -- Ali Bakeer, Al Jazeera

Iran's Rulers Feel the Pain -- Clifford May, Washington Times

Ex-Military Brass Line Up Against War in Iran -- Curt Mills, National Interest

Bibi Is Not As Powerful As We Thought He Was -- Joshua Keating, Slate

The Indian elite and the erosion of democracy -- Pragya Tiwari, Al Jazeera

What’s caused the new flare up between Serbia and Kosovo? -- Al Jazeera/Inside Story (Video)

AP Explains: Why do Serbia-Kosovo tensions persist? -- Jovana Gec, AP

Europe and the Anglosphere Drift Apart -- Daniel Woker, RCW

The Race to Replace Theresa May: A Cheat Sheet -- Yasmeen Serhan, The Atlantic

France Lives in Macron's World Now -- Robert Zaretsky, Foreign Policy

The triumph of Matteo Salvini -- Nicholas Farrell, Spectator

Greece's Bad-Debt Monster Is Alive and Kicking -- Elisa Martinuzzi, Bloomberg View

Nicolas Maduro Has Stripped Venezuela of Its Democratic Future -- Eric Farnsworth, National Interest

Why are so many people dying on Everest? -- DW