Pakistan has sent its first-ever shipment of rare earth metals and critical minerals to the United States, after signing a deal last month with an American company. The shipment has created political controversy inside Pakistan, with the opposition party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), accusing the government of making “secret deals” with the US.

According to a report in The Dawn, the shipment included antimony, copper concentrate, and rare earth elements such as neodymium and praseodymium. These minerals are important because they are used in modern technologies, including batteries, electronics, and defence equipment.

The deal was signed between US Strategic Metals (USSM), a Missouri-based company, and Pakistan’s military engineering arm, Frontier Works Organisation (FWO). USSM has promised to invest nearly $500 million to set up mineral processing and development facilities in Pakistan. The company called the shipment a “significant milestone” in US-Pakistan cooperation.

Pictures released earlier showed Donald Trump looking at a box of rocks that were described as rare earth minerals, with Pakistan’s Army Chief Asim Munir explaining details and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif standing nearby. Analysts say Pakistan, which is struggling with debt and financial aid dependence, is trying to impress the Trump administration with promises of its mineral wealth.

Pakistan’s mineral reserves are often claimed to be worth around $6 trillion, but many companies in the past have failed to find large-scale, commercially viable deposits. The PTI has strongly opposed the mineral deal, saying the government should reveal all the details to the public and Parliament. PTI leaders also raised concerns about reports that Pakistan may even offer the Pasni Port in Balochistan to the US, near the China-backed Gwadar Port.

PTI leaders compared these deals to colonial-era concessions, warning that “reckless, one-sided agreements” could hurt Pakistan’s interests. They said the government must avoid repeating mistakes of history, like Mughal Emperor Jahangir’s decision in 1615 to give trading rights to the British, which eventually led to colonial rule.
The government has not yet issued a detailed response to these criticisms