Cuban cobalt: A gateway to strategic minerals politics?

This article explores Cuba’s status within the context of strategic minerals politics, focusing specifically on cobalt. Cuba has the third largest cobalt reserves in the world, which is a crucial element in lithium-ion batteries (especially those used in electric cars). The US, on the other hand, is sorely lacking in cobalt, which is on Washington’s list of Strategic Raw Minerals and is ranked third in terms of its “supply chain risk”. The key issues/questions addressed in the article are: “Cobalt as a Strategic Raw Material”; an “Overview of Cuban Cobalt”; and “Cuban Cobalt: Economic and Political Implications”. The article concludes with an analysis of cobalt’s potential to enhance Havana’s bargaining power with respect to any negotiations with Washington which might occur regarding US economic sanctions in particular and normalization of relations in general.