The global rush for critical minerals, driven by the demand for renewable energy technologies, has intensified competition among major powers seeking to secure control over emerging “green” value chains. In their bid to reduce their dependence on China and capture greater value within their own markets, advanced economies such as the US and the EU are pressuring poorer but resource-rich countries into trade deals that enable large-scale mineral extraction and export.

The upcoming 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference and the 14th World Trade Organisation Ministerial Conference are expected to tackle issues on critical minerals and the intersection of climate and trade policies. This policy brief contributes to that discussion by examining how Northern-led trade regimes, increasingly framed as strategic partnerships, enable large-scale extraction of critical minerals from the Global South under the guise of advancing a “green” or “just” transition. It also presents policy options to promote more equitable, sustainable, and development-oriented approaches to trade and resource governance.