Australia's resources minister, Madeline King, calls China's dominance a strategic challenge. Last month her government unveiled a critical minerals strategy to counter China's near monopoly. Australia is well-positioned to do something about it because it's rich in critical minerals and rare earths. Nearly all of the lithium ore it digs out, particularly in Western Australia, goes to China for further refining. But there are plans to change that, and the new strategies aim at becoming globally significant producer of processed critical minerals by 2030.