Forum speaker urges multilateral action to secure critical minerals

Unidentified Speaker, speaking at a public forum on critical minerals, thanked attendees and the vice president for coming and said securing critical minerals is a top priority for the administration.

"I can tell you how honored we truly are that all of you would make the trip to be a part of this on such an important topic," the speaker said, opening the session and acknowledging the vice president's attendance.

The speaker framed critical minerals as an international problem that requires multilateral solutions and said the forum and the speaker's position would be used to convene partners. "Our hope is to use both this forum and our, our position here today to serve as a convener on what really is an international problem," the speaker said.

The speaker emphasized the role of critical minerals in daily life and national security: "I don't need to explain to anybody here that critical minerals are are vital to the devices that we use every single day. They power our infrastructure, our industry, and our national defense," the speaker said.

On policy goals, the speaker said the administration seeks "a global market that's secure, a global supply that's enduring and is available to everyone, every nation, at an at an affordable price." The speaker added that this objective is "a top, priority for this administration." No specific policy actions, motions or vote outcomes were announced during the remarks.

The forum remarks presented an overview of priorities and a call for international cooperation; the speaker did not detail specific programs, funding amounts or timelines. The address closed with a restatement that securing critical minerals is an administration-level priority and with an expressed intent to use the forum as a convening mechanism for partners to pursue multilateral solutions.