Gallium has become popular recently and has become a “hot commodity”. Some countries have even started to do whatever it takes for gallium!
So what is gallium?
It is unremarkable in the periodic table, but it is indeed the “invisible hero” of modern technology. Gallium is called the “new food of the semiconductor industry” and is indispensable in products such as optical fiber, chips, and new energy batteries.
Compared with civilian use, the application of gallium in military equipment is more important. For example, gallium is needed to manufacture high-performance radars, missiles, and laser weapon systems. It can be said that it is really related to whether a country’s weapons can be supplied in time and to a country’s military lifeline.
In short, gallium plays a pivotal role in both modern technology and military development.
But as we all know, good things will always be coveted by thieves. On November 4, the WeChat public account of the Ministry of National Security published an article titled “Thousands of Preventions, “Gallium” Thieves Are Hard to Prevent”, exposing a case of theft of metal gallium: an employee of a domestic company was instructed by foreign personnel to seek personal gain and attempted to secretly transport export-controlled materials-gallium out of the country.
What is ridiculous is that the ancient strategy of human smuggling, which has very small shipments and a high risk of being seized, is adopted. This shows how hungry they are! In fact, gallium metal is not a very precious metal. When it is at its highest price, each kilogram can only be sold for about US$700. But why is it on the mind of thieves? This is because before this, in order to ensure its own strategic needs and to safeguard national security interests, China has implemented export controls on gallium, germanium and other related products on August 1, 2023. On the other hand, according to data released by the United States, the total proven gallium reserves in the world are less than 280,000 tons, and about 190,000 tons of them are distributed in China. In other words, China’s gallium reserves account for almost 70% of the world’s total. More importantly, China is the main supplier of gallium metal in the world. In other words, with China’s export controls, “gallium” has become a hard-to-find gallium! But looking at the case itself is not surprising, but what is shocking is the black hand behind the scenes. After all, “gallium” thieves are hard to guard against! As the saying goes, if you are not afraid of thieves stealing, you are afraid of thieves thinking about it! Who is the thief who stole the things? You know, there is demand only when there is a market, and the probability that there is a black hand behind the scenes is high.
This is the question, which country in the world does not have gallium metal and is in short supply? The answer is very obvious. The countries that are currently short of gallium and in urgent need of gallium are European and American countries, or more bluntly, the United States.
On July 6, 2023, a spokesman for the US Pentagon said: “The US Pentagon holds strategic germanium stocks in the United States, but there are currently no gallium stocks.”
According to data from the United States Geological Survey, the United States has not produced gallium metal for more than 20 years, and more than 95% of it is imported. This is like even if the landlord has no surplus food, he has to ask the farmers for food now. But the problem is that the farmers are unwilling to supply food to the landlords.
This is not groundless. How much impact will the supply of gallium metal have on the United States? Just look at the US F35 fighter. So far in 2024, the US F35 fighter has been out of production for nearly a year, and there is still zero delivery.
Logically speaking, under the dual influence of the Russian-Ukrainian war and the Middle East war, the United States should expand its fighter production line in order to make a fortune from the war, rather than not delivering it for a year. What is the reason? It is likely that there is a lack of raw materials, such as rare metal resources such as gallium and germanium, which has led to the suspension of production of F-35 aircraft radar. Not only that, according to Reuters, many American semiconductor companies are also facing the risk of reduced production.
In the long run, what will be the final result of the United States? I believe that anyone with a discerning eye can see it. Gallium is the throat of the development of American science and technology. Without gallium, it may no longer be the United States today. What can I do if I can’t buy gallium? Then I can only get it by stealing. Ants move and steal a little bit. In the international market, the price of gallium metal has increased fivefold, and there is still a situation where there is no market for it. It is conceivable how scarce gallium is.
In fact, China’s control of gallium is not only a control of its own resource security, but more of a heavy punch in the game between China and the United States. When the Biden administration first came to power, it could not wait to launch a series of sanctions to promote the decoupling of China and the United States, trying to exclude China from the global supply chain and firmly grasp the control of high-tech in the hands of the United States to achieve the so-called “national security” goal.
Feng Shui turns! China’s control has directly stunned the United States! You must know that China is the world’s largest exporter of gallium ore, and the United States is the main importer of gallium ore. Just after sanctioning Chinese high-tech companies, they found that they could not turn around without China. Isn’t this a typical case of shooting themselves in the foot.
But as the world’s largest country, the United States is not so easy to admit defeat. On the one hand, it criticized China in the international public opinion field, and on the other hand, it said that it would find channels to stop relying on China, but it never thought that without China, the United States would not be able to buy gallium. But no matter how hard the United States talks, they have adopted this shady way to expose their true situation.
As netizens joked, “The United States wants to suppress China, but is reluctant to give up China’s raw materials. What is the result? It is not that it cannot find substitutes, but that it eventually goes on the road of “stealing”. This decoupling policy has become a joke.
As the saying goes, do not impose on others what you do not want others to do to you. The United States and Western countries have always liked to strangle China and restrict the export of technology and equipment. Now they have tasted the taste of boomerang.
In fact, the theft of gallium reflects more of the hypocrisy and hegemony of the United States. They keep talking about free trade, but in fact they are really doing sneaky things.
In June this year, Syria released a report saying that the US military stationed in Syria dispatched nearly 20 large trucks to steal Syrian wheat every day, and most of the time there were helicopters accompanying and military vehicles escorting. In order to cover up the theft, the US military also checked the mobile phones of passers-by one by one, and detained people if they found relevant photos. Not only that, the news that the US military stole oil in Syria and even smuggled cultural relics It is not uncommon.
If you want to know why the US military stays in Syria, it is probably to steal things!
What can they do if they can’t steal? As the saying goes, the crying child gets the milk. After the battery supply was cut off, the US drone manufacturer Skydio had to cry to the White House, hoping that the White House could find a new supplier for itself.
But the problem is that it is crying, but whether the White House has milk to save it is still a question. You must know that the global supply chain that can meet Skydio’s needs is still concentrated in China. Even if the White House wants to help, it is estimated that it will be powerless in the end.
Feng Shui turns around! China is strangling the neck of the US manufacturing industry, this is Sullivan’s original words, but it is not the United States itself that first wants to decouple and sanction China! I can only say that it deserves it! It’s asking for trouble!
Nowadays, if you can’t buy, you steal, and if you are cut off, you cry. The decoupling path taken by the United States is really ironic. The sins that have been committed will eventually boomerang back to the United States.