The Democratic Republic of Congo has offered the US exclusive access to critical minerals and infrastructure projects in exchange for security assistance as it battles a rebellion backed by neighbouring Rwanda.

In a letter to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Congo asked for an urgent meeting between Presidents Felix Tshisekedi and Donald Trump to discuss a pact that would give American companies access to some of the most coveted minerals for the energy transition.

“As the world’s largest supplier of cobalt and a major producer of lithium, tantalum and uranium, the DRC’s resources are integral to US industrial competitiveness and national security,” an Africa-US business group lobbying on Congo’s behalf said in the letter. A partnership “presents a unique opportunity for the United States to establish a reliable and exclusive supply chain.”

The invitation to exploit Congo’s vast resources shows Tshisekedi has become increasingly desperate in his fight against Rwanda, which supports a rebel group that’s threatened to overthrow his government and seized a wide swath of the country’s mineral-rich east.

The Trump administration is “open to discussing partnerships in this sector,” the US State Department said in an email. “Partnerships with US companies will strengthen both US and DRC economies.”

But any deal is likely a long way off. Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, struggled to interest US firms in Congo’s minerals amid concerns about corruption, environmental degradation and labour issues. The US has also been reluctant to assist Congo’s military, which has been accused of human-rights abuses.

TRICKY NEGOTIATIONS
“For the DRC, this would likely involve lengthy, tricky renegotiations of mining contracts, while it is difficult to see the Trump administration being able to mobilize US investors,” said Joshua Walker, program director for the Congo Research Group at New York University’s Center on International Cooperation. “And it is still unclear whether the new administration will commit significant resources to ending Rwandan aggression in the DRC.”

The letter was one of several sent to senior US officials last month, offering a Congolese deal similar to the Trump administration’s proposed minerals-for-security arrangements with Ukraine, which fell apart last week.

Congo’s mining industry, which is also the world’s second-biggest source of copper, is dominated by Chinese companies. A tie-up with the US would allow Tshisekedi to “shift away from China’s dominant influence and strengthen economic ties with the West,” the lobby group said.

The letter offers US companies operational control and “exclusive extraction and export rights.” It also proposes involvement in a planned deep-water port on Congo’s Atlantic coast and the establishment of a joint strategic mineral stockpile.

In exchange, the US would provide training and equipment for Congo’s armed forces as well as direct security assistance. It would have access to military bases “to protect strategic resources.”

The letter, disclosed on the Foreign Agents Registration Act website, was sent by lobbyist Aaron Poynton of the Africa-USA Business Council on behalf of Pierre Kanda Kalambayi, chair of the Congolese Senate’s Committee on Defense, Security and Border Protection.

Similar letters were also addressed to the heads of the House and Senate Foreign Relations Committees, Republican Senator Ted Cruz, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Republican Representative Rob Wittman, who chairs the House Critical Minerals Policy Working Group.