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STORY: UN / ENERGY CRITIAL MINERALS AND SECURITY
TRT: 03:37
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 05 MARCH 2026, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, exterior, United Nations Headquarters
05 MARCH 2026, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, Security Council
3. Med shot, United States Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo at the dais
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding
Affairs:
“The opportunities and risks critical minerals represent are especially stark in the case of conflict affected states. The mining of these minerals is geographically concentrated. A number of countries and regions affected by conflict are major producers.”
5. Med shot, Wright and DiCarlo at the Council dais
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding
Affairs:
“More than 70 percent of global cobalt extraction, for example, occurs in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Most of the batteries that power our smart devices rely on this material. Myanmar is one of the world's largest sources of rare earth elements, essential for high performance magnets used in advanced electronics. And Ukraine holds significant reserves of titanium and lithium, indispensable for aerospace technologies and advanced manufacturing.”
7. Med shot, Wright and DiCarlo at the Council dais
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding
Affairs:
“The extraction of these resources must deliver just and equitable outcomes. Across the United Nations system we are working closely with national authorities to help them strengthen institutions that manage their national resources, enhance their regulatory frameworks and maximise their peacebuilding benefits.”
9. Med shot, Wright and DiCarlo at the Council dais
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding
Affairs:
“We need multilateral and regional action to strengthen governance, improve the traceability of minerals to kerb illicit flows and build more resilient supply chains. Dialogue between producing and consuming countries, as well as with industry and regional organisations is necessary.”
11. Wide shot, Council
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding
Affairs:
“We must deploy our peace-making instruments to mitigate and resolve natural resource disputes. Our mediators factor-in considerations related to national resources in peace talks. This can help conflict parties identify ways to share benefits and develop cooperative relationships.”
13. Wide shot, Council
14. SOUNDBITE (English) Chris Wright, Secretary of Energy, United States:
“We need more energy, not less energy. And we need it now. Without affordable, reliable, and secure energy nothing works. Energy is life. The absence of energy is poverty, despair, and death.”
15. Wide shot, Council
16. SOUNDBITE (English) Chris Wright, Secretary of Energy, United States:
“In recent years, many governments have adopted aggressive climate policies. These policies, made in the name of climate change have been unrealistic and poorly planned. The energy delusions implicit in climate policies represent real and growing threats to nations and peoples around the world.”
17. Wide shot, Council
18. SOUNDBITE (English) Chris Wright, Secretary of Energy, United States:
“Open markets keep the global economy running and reduce the risk of conflict. It is in the security interest of the United States and our allies to not overly depend on any single country for materials critical to our economies and national security.”
19. Wide shot, end of Council session
Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo today (5 Mar) said, “the opportunities and risks critical minerals represent are especially stark in the case of conflict affected states,” stressing that the international community must “deploy its peace-making instruments to mitigate and resolve natural resource disputes.”
Addressing an open briefing on “Energy, Critical Minerals, and Security,” DiCarlo said, and noted that “a number of countries and regions affected by conflict are major producers” of these minerals.
She said, “more than 70 percent of global cobalt extraction, for example, occurs in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Most of the batteries that power our smart devices rely on this material. Myanmar is one of the world's largest sources of rare earth elements, essential for high performance magnets used in advanced electronics. And Ukraine holds significant reserves of titanium and lithium, indispensable for aerospace technologies and advanced manufacturing.”
The Under-Secretary-General said, “extraction of these resources must deliver just and equitable outcomes,” pointing out that “across the United Nations system we are working closely with national authorities to help them strengthen institutions that manage their national resources, enhance their regulatory frameworks and maximise their peacebuilding benefits.”
She said, “we need multilateral and regional action to strengthen governance, improve the traceability of minerals to kerb illicit flows and build more resilient supply chains,” and added that “dialogue between producing and consuming countries, as well as with industry and regional organisations is necessary.”
DiCarlo said, “our mediators factor in considerations related to national resources in peace talks. This can help conflict parties identify ways to share benefits and develop cooperative relationships.”
United States Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, who presided today’s session, said, “we need more energy, not less energy. And we need it now. Without affordable, reliable, and secure energy nothing works. Energy is life. The absence of energy is poverty, despair, and death.”
Wright said, “in recent years, many governments have adopted aggressive climate policies. These policies, made in the name of climate change have been unrealistic and poorly planned. The energy delusions implicit in climate policies represent real and growing threats to nations and peoples around the world.”
He said, “open markets keep the global economy running and reduce the risk of conflict. It is in the security interest of the United States and our allies to not overly depend on any single country for materials critical to our economies and national security.”
In April 2024, Secretary-General António Guterres launched the Panel on Critical Energy Transition Minerals, aimed at ensuring a just, fair, and sustainable energy transition that fully benefits all countries and communities endowed with these resources.
According to a 2023 report by the intergovernmental organisation the International Energy Agency (IEA), the production of critical minerals is highly concentrated geographically, with China supplying 60 percent of rare earth elements (REE). China also has a significant advantage in processing these minerals, refining 90 percent of REEs and 60-70 percent of lithium and cobalt—minerals vital for lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, smartphones, and laptops.
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