Why Ukraine Matters: Vital Resources and Global Security at Stake

UKRAINE: a perspective of why we need to be involved.

Did you know that Ukraine holds the largest titanium reserve in Europe? There are 15 known deposits in different parts of the country, of which four are being explored. These deposits are situated in the Kharkiv, Kiev, Donetsk, and Dnipropetrovsk regions. The country also has Europe’s largest uranium deposit, accounting for 1.8% of the world’s uranium deposits. The proven reserves contain an estimated 45,600 tons of uranium. But neither titanium nor uranium should be of concern.

GRAPHITE [a major component in Electric Vehicles (EV) batteries, other technologies (such as smartphones), and even low tech like pencils]. Ukraine has 300 graphite deposits, containing over 1 billion tons or 20% of the world’s graphite. Only China has more graphite reserves (26% of the total world’s graphite reserve). Other major resources include mercury (2% of the world, 30,000 tons, ranking it 5th after Spain, China, Algeria, and Kyrgyzstan), potash salt, gold, building materials, ornamental stones, and hydropower resources. So what does all this have to do with us? With this background, it is hard to imagine that Russia and China don’t have a plan.

• The Chinese are long-game thinkers. They are known for their 100-year plans. The Chinese have a much larger economic goal, and their strategy for years has been to dominate the world’s natural resources.

• Russia wants to reclaim “territory” to restore the glory that was once the USSR. Ukraine is only a stepping stone for Russia’s expansion. Crimea was their first. With Ukraine in Russian control and the alliance between Russia and China, China (given their collaborative agreements) would control almost 50% of the world’s supply of graphite reserves. So why does this make a difference to us? Who cares about graphite? As stated above, graphite is used in pencils, steel manufacturing, and electronics like smartphones. BUT … Perhaps its most important application is the lithium-ion battery, where graphite ranks above even lithium as the key ingredient. There is actually 10 to 30 times more graphite than lithium in a lithium-ion battery.

Let’s continue to expand our thinking.

LITHIUM (most widely known for use in batteries, but also medical purposes, ceramics, glass, an alloy to strengthen such materials as aluminum, etc.) The four largest lithium producers are Australia, Argentina, Chile and China. China, the third-largest producer, has a strong foothold in the lithium supply chain. Alongside developing domestic mines, Chinese companies have acquired around $5.6 billion worth of lithium assets in countries like Chile, Argentina, Canada, and Australia over the last decade. It also hosts 60% of the world’s lithium refining battery capacity. It is the way China does business. They invest in countries – short-term or long-term. Short term – they tie the $$ provided to countries with a quid quo pro of using China personnel for in-country projects; long term – to gain control of the natural resources to increase their % of world supply. Not to ignore the fact – Russia also invests in Argentina in order to use that country as a gateway to Latin America. Result: Gaining the lion’s share of the world’s sources for both graphite and lithium, how much will the world pay in the future for those batteries that will power Electronic Vehicles (EVs) ?

Want more reasons? IRON ORE and MANGANESE ORE (why are these important?)

IRON ORE:
• Ukraine, Australia, and Russia have the biggest proportion of iron ore deposits in the world. Many analysts agree that demand from China ultimately determines iron ore prices. China is the third-largest producer of usable iron ore. If China were to have access to another iron ore asset in Ukraine, the global price for iron ore could drop since its biggest customer will access to an annual production gain of 51 metric tons. As it is, China now produces approximately 353 metric tons per year (an additional 51 metric tons would result in a 15% increase in capacity that they control).

MANGANESE ORE:

• Ukraine is in the world’s top ten producers of manganese ore and has the largest manganese ore reserve in Europe.

• Uses of manganese ore include:
o Production of strong steel alloys
o Deoxidizer and desulfurized in steel production
o Batteries (alkaline and rechargeable)
o Alloying with metals like aluminum and copper
o Micronutrients in fertilizers and animal feed
o Water treatment chemicals
o Colorant used on automobile paint
o Manufacturing of bleaching powder, insecticides, paints, and batteries.

CONSIDER THIS

We need to ensure that Russia (also with partner China) is rebuked from Ukraine. In the short term, this will be difficult since we are speaking of Putin’s ego, and he appears not interested in backing down. Is there a risk? Of course, there is. But ceding territory to Russia as a concession is not the answer and increases the probability of future aggression. We saw what happened with Crimea.

Long-term: Russia and their partner China gain notable control of a larger percentage of the world’s natural resources – some of those resources are key to our future efforts to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. I wanted to highlight these points for you to consider when hearing of some of our representatives attempting to withdraw support of NATO and/or our support to help Ukraine retain its independence from an encroaching neighbor. On the humanitarian side, the people of Ukraine are suffering due to the aggression by Russia, a dangerous adversary. As an independent country, Ukraine wants peace, just like any of us. For their families and for their children. Do you think that they are much different than us? We paid a heavy price for a free Europe in WWII.

Will we abandon those who have depended on us for 80+ years? They are our partner on a global scale. From both economic and humanitarian perspectives, helping to defend Ukraine is in the interests of our National Security and the future well-being of our country and our major partners in Europe. Since WWII, we have been relied upon to protect the freedoms that exist in many countries worldwide. It is in our DNA. We can now see other countries joining the fight – Sweden, Finland, Norway, Poland, Germany, etc. We need to encourage this, not abandon them, and help them keep the pressure/resistance against tyranny. We cannot lose sight of the importance of this topic to all of us. This topic needs us to signal our positive support for our allies across the Pond regardless of our election’s outcome.

I encourage you to write letters to your representatives in both the Congress and the Senate and the members/leadership of your political parties of choice. We need to continue to support Ukraine and send a united message to Russia and China. Thank you for reading.

Kenneth Roko
Middletown, VA 

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