Pakistan ships rare earths to US after deal with Trump, Imran Khan's PTI questions 'secret deals'

Pakistan has sent its first-ever shipment of rare earth and critical minerals to the US, following a deal signed last month with an American company to explore and develop the country’s mineral resources.

This comes days after Army Chief Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif showcased Pakistan’s rare earth minerals to US President Donald Trump during his Washington visit.

The shipment includes antimony, copper concentrate, and rare earth elements such as neodymium and praseodymium, Dawn reported on Monday.

Trump’s $500-million investment deal with Pak army

US Strategic Metals (USSM) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in September with the Pakistani military’s Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) to invest around $500 million in setting up mineral processing and development facilities in Pakistan. The samples sent to the US were “prepared locally in collaboration with the FWO,” according to Dawn.

In a statement, USSM called the delivery “a significant milestone in the strategic partnership between Pakistan and the United States,” adding that the MoU “lays out a comprehensive framework for collaboration across the full mineral value chain — spanning exploration, processing, and the development of refining facilities within Pakistan.”

USSM, based in Missouri, focuses on producing and recycling critical minerals that the US Department of Energy considers essential for various technologies, the US mission in Pakistan said.

Munir parades rare earth at White House to woo Trump

The shipment followed a White House photo showing Donald Trump examining a box of rocks described as rare earth minerals, with Army Chief Asim Munir explaining details and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif looking on.

“Living from one handout to another, Pakistan, knowing that a deal-seeking Trump occupies the White House, has been trying to woo the US with its unproven reserves of rare earths,” Dawn reported. Pakistan’s mineral wealth is estimated at around $6 trillion, making it one of the world’s most resource-rich nations, though several multinational companies have left after failing to locate the promised mineral riches.

Imran Khan’s PTI demands full disclosure

The Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has demanded the government disclose the full details of its agreements with the US and American companies, Dawn reported. PTI Information Secretary Sheikh Waqqas Akram said Parliament and the public should be informed, adding: “full details of all such deals be made public.”

Concerns over Pasni Port

PTI’s concerns extend beyond the $500-million mineral deal. The party has raised alarms over reports that Pakistan may offer Pasni Port — near the China-backed Gwadar port — to the US for mineral access. The issue followed a closed-door meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Army Chief Asim Munir, and President Trump, drawing comparisons to colonial-era “concessions.”

Commenting on the USSM shipment and reports by The Financial Times about Pasni Port, Akram warned that “reckless, one-sided, and secretive deals could further aggravate the already fragile situation in the country.”

The FT report noted that Pakistan has proposed offering a port on the Arabian Sea in Balochistan to the US, strategically close to India’s Chabahar port in Iran.

Akram emphasised that PTI “would never accept agreements struck at the expense of the people and the state’s interests” and urged the Shehbaz government to learn from history, citing Mughal Emperor Jahangir’s 1615 decision to grant trading rights to the British at Surat Port, which eventually led to colonial control.