 AP Photo China ended its rare earths embargo of the West last week, with shipments resuming to Japan, the United States, and Europe after a speech by Secretary of State Clinton raised the diplomatic stakes. The ban ended as it began, quietly and without official notification. The question now is whether the resumption of trade will lull the developed world back into dependence, or whether the whole affair really was, as Clinton described, a "wake-up call." TAGGED: Resource Wars, Clinton, Europe, Japan, China, United States, Secretary of StateRECOMMENDED ARTICLES| The viability of water supplies throughout key regions of China, India, Pakistan, South Africa and the US are under threat from unsustainable domestic, agricultural and industrial demands, according to a new study that maps water... more ›› |
| Conflict and intrigue over valuable energy supplies have been features of the international landscape for a long time. Major wars over oil have been fought every decade or so since World War I, and smaller engagements have... more ›› |
| Can the U.S. lead the world back to prosperity? The global economy is lurching toward the cliff. Twice before over the last 75 years Washington took the necessary action, and after November, with a new President and Congress,... more ›› |
| In Tokyo, I heard a profound sense of resignation about Japan's ability to take a larger role in providing its own defense, even among defense intellectuals. When pressed on this point, Japanese-security scholars shrug and... more ›› |
| The East China Sea may be the most strategic location in all of Asia. While the media and policymakers have paid considerable attention to the geopolitical significance of the South China Sea, the East China Sea deserves equal... more ›› |
| |