Estonia Is Discussing Cooperation With The U.S. In The Field Of Rare Earth Metals
- 19.09.2026, 8:56
The day before, Washington signed a similar agreement with Lithuania.
Estonia is discussing an agreement with the U.S. on cooperation in the field of rare earth metals. According to Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, the agreement concerns the processing of these metals, not their extraction. Washington signed a similar agreement with Lithuania the day before, according to ERR.
Tsakhna states that Estonia is home to one of the largest facilities outside of China for the production of rare earth metals, and this has attracted the attention of the Americans.
“Our interest lies in establishing, outside of China, the largest and most significant—at least on a European scale—research and development center in this field here in Estonia. In addition, we want to attract more investment to Estonia and strengthen our country’s position in this industry. And, of course, the issue of security is also important here,” said Tsahkna.
The day before, the U.S. signed a similar memorandum with Lithuania. Vilnius plans to leverage its expertise in high-tech manufacturing, cutting-edge technologies, the processing of critical materials, and logistics as part of this cooperation.
“This is the second-highest priority in foreign policy, right after security issues. Our goal is to address challenges in the economy and economic security, build a strategic partnership with the U.S. as the world’s leading power, and create sustainable and reliable supply chains,” said Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys.
The Americans discussed this issue at length with Lithuanian companies. Over the next six months, Lithuania and the U.S. will jointly identify priority projects and secure public and private funding for their implementation.
“The secure supply and processing of critical minerals are of key importance to the 21st-century economy. I think this has already been discussed at length. It is essential for the economy. It is also of paramount importance for our national defense. For example, Lithuania is a global leader in photonics and photonic technologies,” noted U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
So far, among EU countries, Poland and Lithuania have signed a memorandum with the U.S. on working with rare earth metals; in addition to EU countries, the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, and Malaysia have also done so.