US Seeks India’s Help To Counter China’s Rare Earth Grip — While Keeping 50 Per Cent Tariffs On Indian Goods

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said Washington expects support from India and other allies to counter China’s tightening control over global rare earth supplies — even as the United States continues to impose steep tariffs on Indian goods, India Today reported.

In an interview with Fox News, Bessent described Beijing’s recent export curbs as “China versus the world,” expressing confidence that US partners would align behind Washington’s countermeasures.

“We have already been in touch with the allies. We will be meeting with them this week, and I expect that we will get substantial global support from the Europeans, from the Indians, from the democracies in Asia... This is a global problem, and I think our global allies will follow us on this,” he said.

The statement comes while the US maintains a 50 per cent tariff on Indian imports.

Bessent said the United States would not allow China’s export controls to continue unchecked and that “everything is on the table” to respond.

“Back in early summer, we were forced to put 12 countermeasures on China that were highly affected by natural resources that are used in the making of plastics for jet engines and parts. I believe that they had to ground a large part of their civilian fleet. So, we have plenty of straight brute force countermeasures that we can pull,” he said.

He accused Beijing of “financing war,” claiming that its restrictions threaten the global economy, a charge earlier levelled on India for buying Russian crude oil amid the Moscow's ongoing war in Ukraine.

“The United States is pushing for peace in the world. China is financing war,” he said.

Last week, China tightened its export control measures on rare-earth elements and imposed new fees on US ships after Washington expanded its own export rules.

According to the US Department of Defence, rare earth magnets are crucial for American military systems, including F-35 fighter jets, submarines, drones, Tomahawk missiles, and radar equipment.

The International Energy Agency estimates that China accounts for 60 per cent of global rare-earth mining and over 90 per cent of refining, while the US Geological Survey notes that around 70 per cent of US rare-earth imports come from China.

US President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to impose an additional 100 per cent tariff on Chinese products from 1 November and to introduce export controls on “any critical software.”

He had earlier suggested cancelling his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, accusing Beijing of “hostile” trade behaviour after China expanded export restrictions.

Later, he said there was no need to “worry about China” and that Xi “had a bad moment.”

Bessent confirmed that the meeting between Trump and Xi would still take place in South Korea.

“President Trump said that the tariffs would not go into effect until 1 November. He will be meeting with Party Chair Xi in Korea. I believe that the meeting will still be on. There has been substantial communication over the weekend,” he said.

The United States and China have been engaged in trade negotiations since April, with a temporary truce due to expire on 10 November.

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