By AFP and Focus | 2026-01-12

TOKYO -- A Japanese research vessel has begun a historic voyage to attempt to extract deep-sea rare earths at a depth of 6,000 meters to curb dependence on China.

On January 12, a scientific drilling boat called the Chikyu left Shimizu port in Shizuoka prefecture for the island of Minami Torishima in the Pacific, where surrounding waters may contain a rich trove of valuable minerals.

The test cruise comes as China, which is by far the world's biggest supplier of rare earths, ramps up pressure on its neighbor. This pressure follows Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's suggestion in November that Tokyo could react militarily to an attack on Taiwan. Beijing claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to seize it by force if necessary.

Prioritizing resource security

This struggle for resource security is a recurring theme for Japan. An earlier spat in 2010 saw Japan move to lessen its dependence on Beijing for rare earths, but more than 70% still comes from China, according to Tokyo, a statistic it is looking to change.

This urgency was further underscored by Beijing's announcement on January 6 of an immediate ban on "dual use" exports to Japan, namely, those that could have both military and civil applications.

"China's export control measures on rare earths and other materials have been ongoing for some time and are having a serious impact on the global supply chain," chief government spokesman Minoru Kihara said on January 8.

He told a regular briefing that the same was true of rare earth minerals, which are crucial for an array of tech products. "We will continue to monitor the situation closely and, in coordination with relevant countries, take necessary measures if required," he added.

Rare earths are used in a vast array of products: smartphones, electric vehicles, wind turbines, missiles and others; 17 of these metals are difficult to extract from the Earth's crust.

Offsetting Chinese leverage

China has long used its dominance in rare earths for geopolitical leverage, including in its trade war with the United States.

The Chikyu's voyage, delayed by one day because of bad weather, could lead to domestic production of rare earths, said Shoichi Ishii, program director at the Cabinet Office.

"We are considering diversifying our procurement sources and avoiding excessive reliance on specific countries," he told reporters at the port as the ship prepared to leave.

"One approach I believe could be pursued is establishing a process to achieve domestic production of rare earths," he said.

The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology has touted the Chikyu test as the world's first at such depths.

Possibly 16 million tons of rare earths at stake

The area around Minami Torishima, which lies in Japan's economic waters, is estimated to contain more than 16 million tons of rare earths, which the Nikkei business daily says is the third-largest reserve globally. These rich deposits contain an estimated 730 years' worth of dysprosium, used in high-strength magnets in phones and electric cars, and 780 years' worth of yttrium, used in lasers, Nikkei said.

The Chikyu cruise is scheduled to last until February 14. Beijing has been delaying Japanese imports as well as rare earth exports to Tokyo, as their two-month-old dispute escalates, say recent media reports. The Chinese block on exports of dual use items is fueling worries in Japan that Beijing could choke off supplies of rare earths. China includes some of them on its list of dual use goods.