The United States and India have signed a Critical Minerals Cooperation Framework aimed at reducing dependence on China-dominated supply chains through joint processing, technology partnerships, regulatory coordination, and workforce development. As reported by Outlook Business, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar signed the bilateral agreement on May 26, 2026, at Hyderabad House in New Delhi, building on the Forum on Resource Geostrategic Engagement launched earlier this year in Washington. The framework explicitly frames cooperation around reducing dependence on 'single-source monopolies' - a direct response to China's commanding position in rare earth processing, which extends to over 85 percent of global refining capacity. This partnership creates a natural basis for industrial cooperation, as India possesses significant deposits of rare earth minerals, particularly in monazite sands from its coastline, while the US has expanded funding for rare earth processing research and pilot facilities. The cooperation framework has been further strengthened by the Union Cabinet's approval of the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM) on January 29, 2025, establishing a comprehensive domestic framework for critical minerals development.
The US-India Business Council (USIBC) has welcomed the signing of the US-India Framework on Critical Minerals and Rare Earths, describing it as creating 'actionable pathways' for investment, off-take agreements, co-development, and technology partnerships across mining, processing, and rare earth magnet supply chains. According to Firstpost, USIBC President Atul Keshap emphasized that this week's announcements on energy security, critical minerals, and maritime ports demonstrate there is a lot of life and logic to the Quad and hosting the meeting in New Delhi, capping off Secretary Rubio's landmark visit, reinforces India's role as a vital global partner. The council highlighted significant commercial potential in the TRUST framework for strategic technology cooperation, civilian nuclear power, data centres, defence co-production, and efforts toward a bilateral trade framework. USIBC also welcomed the Quad's Critical Minerals Framework announced during the meeting, stating it strengthens the broader multilateral architecture supporting bilateral cooperation.
The cooperation framework creates opportunities for practical joint investment in processing infrastructure either in India or the US, pairing American technology and offtake commitments with Indian feedstock, industrial scale, and technical workforce. According to Outlook Business, Vulcan Elements, a North Carolina-based rare earth magnet manufacturer backed by a $1.4 billion US government partnership, is building toward 10,000 metric tonnes of annual magnet capacity - enough to make it one of the largest magnet manufacturing efforts outside China. Partnerships between companies like Vulcan and India's state-run IREL (India) Limited (formerly Indian Rare Earths Limited) could help accelerate an integrated rare earth processing ecosystem spanning both countries. This collaboration would strengthen supply security for both nations while establishing a diversified critical minerals supply chain for the broader Indo-Pacific region. The USIBC noted that India's central role in the Quad architecture as both one of the world's largest crude importers and an emerging clean energy hub positions it as a natural partner for US companies seeking to invest in energy resilience across the region.
Both countries are advancing technologies to recover rare earth elements and critical minerals from coal ash, mine waste, and related byproducts. The US Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory has supported pilot-scale projects focused on extracting rare earth elements from coal ash and other waste streams, while the DOE recently announced up to $135 million in funding opportunities to support projects demonstrating commercial viability of recovering rare earth elements from mine tailings and waste materials. India's Ministry of Mines announced in January 2026 its first tailings policy, setting guidelines for exploration and recovery of critical minerals from mine dumps and legacy waste streams. US scientists and Indian institutions have initiated joint work on sample analysis, collection protocols, and beneficiation methods aimed at assessing commercial potential of waste streams, with collaboration already beginning at ground level.
Energy cooperation featured prominently in the discussions, with Rubio encouraging India to increase purchases of US energy products amid uncertainty linked to the Strait of Hormuz and the Iran crisis. According to Firstpost, the launch of the Quad Fuel Security Forum and the broader Quad Initiative on Indo-Pacific Energy Security are timely and consequential steps given disruptions to key maritime routes driving fuel and fertilizer price volatility across the Indo-Pacific. The framework also addresses visa-related concerns, with Jaishankar raising issues faced by legitimate Indian travellers seeking US visas, to which Rubio responded that the changes were part of a wider US modernisation effort. Rubio also attended the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting in New Delhi on Tuesday, where he reassured India that Washington's tactical engagements with countries such as China and Pakistan would not come at the expense of its strategic partnership with New Delhi. Following the talks, Rubio indicated that both sides were moving towards a mutually 'beneficial and sustainable' trade agreement, with recent US tariff revisions being part of a broader global rebalancing exercise rather than measures specifically aimed at India.
