India negotiates with ethnic militias for Myanmar's rare earths

To reduce dependence on China, India has initiated direct contacts with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA). The Indian Ministry of Mines has engaged state-owned IREL and Midwest Advanced Materials, a private firm, to explore potential large-scale exports from Myanmar. Meanwhile, India’s government has decided to exempt mining projects from mandatory public consultations, effectively excluding local communities from vetting mining projects.

Yangon (AsiaNews/Agencies) – India has initiated direct contacts with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the armed force of one Myanmar's main ethnic groups fighting the country’s ruling military junta.

New Delhi’s goal is to obtain rare earth samples in an effort to reduce dependence on China, which almost entirely controls this trade.

According to sources contacted by Reuters, the Indian Ministry of Mines coordinated the operation in July, involving the state-owned company IREL and the private firm Midwest Advanced Materials, which reached an agreement with the rebels to send the first samples and evaluate large-scale exports.

This is a rare occurrence for India, which typically avoids involvement with independent armed groups. The KIA seized the Chipwe-Pangwa mining belt in October 2024, gaining control of one of the world's richest sources of dysprosium and terbium.

The Catholic Church in Myanmar had already expressed its opposition to mining in the area, which is responsible for soil and water pollution.

In March 2023, Bishop Raymond Sumlut Gam of Banmaw, along with four other diocesan bishops, denounced the effects of environmental devastation. Noting that natural resources are "a gift from God" to be safeguarded, he stressed the moral responsibility to protect them for future generations.

Control of the mines has strengthened KIA’s political and military clout. The group has been fighting for the autonomy of the Kachin people since 1961 and is among the most active forces opposing the China-backed junta that took power in a coup in 2021.

The rebels are currently engaged in a battle for Bhamo, a strategic town in eastern Kachin, where the Myanmar Army recently recaptured two bases, according to the KIA, which launched its first offensive last December.

The war has also affected Catholic communities in the area. St Patrick's Cathedral in Banmaw was burned down by the military in March this year, and the bishop was forced to flee at the end of 2024.

In the meantime, the Indian government has adopted new measures to speed up access to rare earths.

The Union Ministry of the Environment has decided to exempt mining projects involving atomic, critical, and strategic minerals from the requirement for public consultations, required by environmental impact assessment legislation.

This decision ends the involvement of local communities, whose residents can express their opinions on mining projects during public consultations.

The government cited “national defence and security requirements” for this decision, supported by the Ministry of Defence and the Department of Atomic Energy, which reported a serious shortage of rare earth elements needed to make radar, sonar, and communications systems.

Although mining projects will continue to be assessed by expert committees, New Delhi has long been seeking to streamline approval procedures for developing new mining sites.

Earlier this year, the Ministry of Mines published a list of critical elements requiring separate authorisation. But a law was introduced in 2023 to promote mining exploration and exploitation, regardless of the environmental damage caused.

• india
• myanmar
• china
• rare earths
• kachin independence army
• kia
• military junta