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The U.S. can absolutely find the minerals elsewhere, but cannot quickly replace China’s refining and processing capacity.
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Mining isn’t the issue — refining is.
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Even with fast-track government support, it would take ~5 years to ease dependence and 8–10 years to achieve near-self-sufficiency.
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Until then, the U.S. and allies will remain partially vulnerable to Chinese export restrictions on high-purity REE compounds, especially for semiconductor and defense uses.