The U.S. is preparing to mine the sea floor for critical minerals to reduce its dependence on China. But doing so in international waters could undermine a global rules-based order and indirectly benefit Beijing, policy experts warn. Efforts to create international guidelines on seabed mining through the International Seabed Authority (ISA), a U.N. regulator, have long stalled, with many countries and organizations opposing such activity over environmental concerns. Amid the gridlock, Washington is seeking to expedite the development of its deep-sea mining industry under U.S. law and is evaluating commercial license applications from firms such as Canada's The Metals Company . Deep-sea mining involves the extraction of critical mineral resources from the ocean floor, including rare earth e

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