Ankara, Turkey – Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar categorically denied allegations that his country had transferred reserves of rare earth minerals to the United States. He emphasized that the agreement between the two sides pertains solely to the field of nuclear energy.
This came in a comment by the Turkish minister in response to controversial remarks made by the US ambassador to Ankara, Thomas Barrack, before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Barrack had described Turkey’s rare earth reserves as a “strategic opportunity.”
Türkiye is among the top five globally
The Turkish minister, in statements reported by the local newspaper “Türkiye,” clarified the size of these reserves, placing his country among the world’s leading powers in this field.
“We have discovered 694 million tons of rare earth elements in the ‘Belikova’ region. With this quantity, our country will enter the list of the top five countries in the world in this field. We are actively working on this file and intend to create a pilot plant.”
No selling, no worries: nuclear deal
Bayraktar was quick to refute claims suggesting the extracted elements might be sold to the United States. He reassured the local public, clarifying the nature of the cooperation with Washington: “We have not supplied the United States with any rare earth elements. We have an agreement related to nuclear energy. If it were about rare earth elements, we would have announced it publicly. There is nothing to worry about or fear here.”
It is worth noting that the Beylikova region in Eskişehir province ranks second globally in terms of rare earth element reserves (694 million tons), coming directly after China, whose reserves are estimated at around 800 million tons.
