Last week, Beijing reminded the world just how much control it still wields over the arteries of modern technology. In a policy move that reverberated across capitals from Washington to New Delhi, China’s Ministry of Commerce issued “Announcement No. 62 of 2025” — new sweeping curbs on rare earth exports. The directive tightened the approval process for companies exporting products containing even trace amounts of rare earth elements, effectively placing a bureaucratic lock on a supply chain the world has come to depend on.

It was a timely reminder that the true power in the 21st century doesn’t just flow through data servers or oil pipelines, but through minerals — 17 obscure elements with names like neodymium, dysprosium, and terbium — that make our smartphones smarter, our jets stealth

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