Announced during Indian Prime Minister’s visit to Washington, it aims to strengthen cooperation in critical minerals, pharmaceuticals, advanced materials etc.
Significance of TRUST initiative
- Encourage public and private investments, to boost manufacturing capacity, creating jobs in both India and USA.
- Boost exports by reducing barriers to technology transfer, addressing export controls, enhancing high-tech commerce.
- Builds trusted & resilient supply chains for critical minerals, semiconductors, Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients etc.
- Recovery & processing of strategic minerals like lithium, Rare Earth Elements etc. to diversify supply chains and counter China’s dominance.
- Fosters innovation, by catalysing government-to-government, academia & private sector collaboration in fields of critical & emerging technologies like defence, AI, quantum technology, etc.
- Strengthens government's National Critical Mineral Mission, encouraging public and private sector companies to acquire critical mineral assets abroad.
About Critical Minerals
- They are elements that are building blocks of essential modern-day technologies and are at risk of supply chain disruptions due to limited global production & geopolitical factors.
- Importance:
- Defence: Neodymium, samarium for high-performance magnets used in missiles, fighter jets, and radars.
- Energy: Lithium, cobalt power are used in advanced batteries for energy storage and electric vehicles.
- Medical: Europium, Terbium enhances biotech imaging and medical diagnostics.
