New Delhi, April 23 -- The US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told a Senate committee on Wednesday that the United States is coordinating a whole-of-government effort to counter China's dominance over critical minerals, calling Beijing's control a "chokehold" that has effectively weaponized supply chains.

Testifying on the administration's fiscal year 2027 budget, Lutnick said rare earth minerals -- essential for semiconductor manufacturing and advanced technologies -- have become a strategic vulnerability. "Critical minerals have been weaponized by China, who has a dominant position, and we need to break that chokehold," he said. The Department of Commerce, he added, is working closely with the Department of War, the Department of Ene...