By AFP
February 3, 2025
Workers at a coltan mine near Rubaya in eastern DRC, a region now under M23 control - Copyright AFP ANGELA WEISS
Eric RANDOLPH
The conflict between Rwanda-backed forces and the DR Congo is often presented as a struggle to control the valuable minerals that power global electronics.
But the focus on “conflict minerals” may obscure other drivers of the violence in one of the world’s most volatile regions.
DRC and Rwanda together supply around half the world’s coltan, the metallic ore that is vital in making phones and laptops.
United Nations experts, rights groups and analysts say Rwanda smuggles vast amounts of coltan — as well as gold and other metals — out of eastern DRC and sells it as its own.
They accuse Rwanda of supporting an armed group, M23, that resurfaced in eastern DRC in 2021 and controls many of the region’s mines.
Last April, they seized Rubaya, whose mines produce an estimated 15 percent of the world’s coltan, according to the UN experts, who estimate the M23 earns some $800,000 per month from the trade.
The M23 last week seized the key transport hub of Goma on the Rwandan border, leaving hundreds dead, and is pushing south into the neighbouring South Kivu province.
Robert Amsterdam, a lawyer who filed a criminal case against Apple in December on behalf of the Congolese government, said Western governments and companies bear ultimate responsibility.
“The tech industry has funded Rwanda’s war crimes,” he told AFP.
Apple initially said there was “no reasonable basis for concluding” its products contain illegally exported minerals from conflict zones.
But after the criminal case was filed, Apple said it had ordered its suppliers to stop sourcing minerals from DRC and Rwanda.
Apple “has now admitted they can’t distinguish the source of the minerals,” said Amsterdam.
“It means all the supply chains of all the tech companies are all equally tainted.”
Apple has “firmly contested” the allegations, saying it is “profoundly engaged” in responsible sourcing of minerals.
– ‘Rwandans pay well’ –
Rwanda denies illegally smuggling minerals out of eastern DRC, but analysts are unconvinced.
“Rwanda is always in the top 10 biggest exporters of coltan. Everyone knows this is impossible with the reserves they have. It’s obvious this coltan comes from DRC,” said Guillaume de Brier of the International Peace Information Service, which specialises in the region.
Nonetheless, he argued that minerals are not the main driver of the M23 conflict.
He pointed out that smuggling happens whether Rwanda is militarily active in eastern DRC or not.
Agence Ecofin, a data firm, said Rwanda’s coltan exports surged in 2014-2018 when the M23 was dormant — although there was an “unprecedented” boost in its exports in 2023, according to the UN.
Congolese miners don’t need convincing to sell to Rwanda, since it saves them onerous paperwork and taxes.
“You’re talking about people who won’t eat if they don’t make money on the day. They see it as much better to sell to Rwandans who pay well and in cash,” De Brier said.
The current escalation in the conflict has other drivers, not least the personal animosity between Rwandan President Paul Kagame and DRC leader Felix Tshisekedi.
But local concerns are most important, said De Brier.
“For the media, it’s less sexy than talking about conflict minerals,” he said. “But these people are farmers — the real issue is land ownership.”
– ‘Catastrophe brought by tech’ –
The M23 originally emerged claiming to defend the long-marginalised Tutsi minority in Congo.
“They are trying to dismantle the traditional systems of land management controlled by local chieftains,” said De Brier.
The International Peace Information Service, a think tank, argues that minerals are only one part of M23’s funding, which also includes an estimated $69,500 per month in roadblock levies, as well as household taxes, forced agricultural labour, and timber and charcoal trafficking.
None of this should absolve the West for its part in fuelling the unrest, Amsterdam said.
“This has been a catastrophe brought to you by tech,” he said.
He hopes Apple’s decision to stop sourcing from there will trigger “a cascade of change in the entire tech industry”.
Rare earths: strategic metals key to future technologies
By AFP
February 4, 2025
Spread thinly, rare earths are essential in a range of high-tech products key to combatting climate change - Copyright AFP Jim WATSON
Rare earths, which President Donald Trump hopes to secure from Ukraine as part of a deal for US aid, are strategic metals essential for industries developing computers, batteries, and cutting-edge energy technology.
– Are they rare? –
Not really. With names like dysprosium, neodymium and cerium, rare earths are a group of 17 heavy metals that are actually abundant in the Earth’s crust across the globe.
In a 2024 assessment, the United States Geological Survey estimated there were 110 million tonnes of deposits worldwide, including 44 million in China — by far the world’s largest producer.
A further 22 million tonnes are estimated in Brazil, 21 million in Vietnam, while Russia has 10 million and India seven million tonnes.
But mining the metals requires heavy chemical use that results in huge amounts of toxic waste and has caused several environmental disasters, making many countries wary of shouldering the heavy financial costs for production.
They are often found in minute ore concentrations, meaning large amounts of rock must be processed to produce the refined product, often in powder form.
– Why are they special? –
Each of the 17 rare earths are used in industry and can be found in a wide variety of everyday and high-tech devices, from light bulbs to guided missiles.
Europium is crucial for television screens, cerium is used for polishing glass and refining oil, lanthanum makes a car’s catalytic converters operate — the list in the modern economy is virtually endless.
And all have unique properties that are more or less irreplaceable or can be substituted only at prohibitive costs.
Neodymium and dysprosium, for example, allow the fabrication of almost permanent, super-strong magnets that require little maintenance, making viable the placement of ocean wind turbines to generate electricity far from the coastline.
– China in the lead –
For decades, Beijing has made the most of its reserves by investing massively in refining operations — often without the strict environmental oversight required in Western countries.
China has also filed a huge number of patents on rare earth production, an obstacle to companies in other countries hoping to launch large-scale processing.
As a result, many firms find it cheaper to ship their ore to China for refining, further reinforcing the world’s reliance.
– Strategy and supply –
The United States and European Union get most of their supply from China, but both are trying to boost their own production and better recycle what they use to reduce dependence on Beijing.
At the height of a US-China trade dispute in 2019, Chinese state media suggested that rare earth exports to the United States could be cut in retaliation for American measures, sparking fear among a range of manufacturers.
Japan saw first-hand the pain of a cut-off in 2010, when China halted rare earth exports over a territorial conflict.
Since then, Tokyo has pushed hard to diversify supplies, signing deals with the Australian group Lynas for production from Malaysia, and ramping up its recycling capabilities.
Trump said Monday he wanted to reach a deal in which Kyiv guaranteed supplies of rare earths in return for US aid, an idea floated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last year.
By AFP
February 4, 2025
Spread thinly, rare earths are essential in a range of high-tech products key to combatting climate change - Copyright AFP Jim WATSON
Rare earths, which President Donald Trump hopes to secure from Ukraine as part of a deal for US aid, are strategic metals essential for industries developing computers, batteries, and cutting-edge energy technology.
– Are they rare? –
Not really. With names like dysprosium, neodymium and cerium, rare earths are a group of 17 heavy metals that are actually abundant in the Earth’s crust across the globe.
In a 2024 assessment, the United States Geological Survey estimated there were 110 million tonnes of deposits worldwide, including 44 million in China — by far the world’s largest producer.
A further 22 million tonnes are estimated in Brazil, 21 million in Vietnam, while Russia has 10 million and India seven million tonnes.
But mining the metals requires heavy chemical use that results in huge amounts of toxic waste and has caused several environmental disasters, making many countries wary of shouldering the heavy financial costs for production.
They are often found in minute ore concentrations, meaning large amounts of rock must be processed to produce the refined product, often in powder form.
– Why are they special? –
Each of the 17 rare earths are used in industry and can be found in a wide variety of everyday and high-tech devices, from light bulbs to guided missiles.
Europium is crucial for television screens, cerium is used for polishing glass and refining oil, lanthanum makes a car’s catalytic converters operate — the list in the modern economy is virtually endless.
And all have unique properties that are more or less irreplaceable or can be substituted only at prohibitive costs.
Neodymium and dysprosium, for example, allow the fabrication of almost permanent, super-strong magnets that require little maintenance, making viable the placement of ocean wind turbines to generate electricity far from the coastline.
– China in the lead –
For decades, Beijing has made the most of its reserves by investing massively in refining operations — often without the strict environmental oversight required in Western countries.
China has also filed a huge number of patents on rare earth production, an obstacle to companies in other countries hoping to launch large-scale processing.
As a result, many firms find it cheaper to ship their ore to China for refining, further reinforcing the world’s reliance.
– Strategy and supply –
The United States and European Union get most of their supply from China, but both are trying to boost their own production and better recycle what they use to reduce dependence on Beijing.
At the height of a US-China trade dispute in 2019, Chinese state media suggested that rare earth exports to the United States could be cut in retaliation for American measures, sparking fear among a range of manufacturers.
Japan saw first-hand the pain of a cut-off in 2010, when China halted rare earth exports over a territorial conflict.
Since then, Tokyo has pushed hard to diversify supplies, signing deals with the Australian group Lynas for production from Malaysia, and ramping up its recycling capabilities.
Trump said Monday he wanted to reach a deal in which Kyiv guaranteed supplies of rare earths in return for US aid, an idea floated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last year.
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