German Chancellor Olaf Schulz said Germany wants to expand investment in Mongolia to help secure strategic raw materials, including copper and rare earths, foreign media reported.
The East Asian country, sandwiched between Russia and China, can be a reliable partner for Germany as it seeks to diversify suppliers and guarantee access to materials needed in areas such as battery and chip production, Schulz (top) said on Friday after talks with Mongolian Prime Minister Oyun-Erdene.
"What is important now is to identify very specific projects where cooperation can move forward," Mr. Schulz told reporters at a joint news conference. He added that Germany wanted "many good partners in the world" as it wanted to avoid "putting all its eggs in one basket".
Major economies such as Germany are competing fiercely for increasingly scarce resources, and access to metals and rare earths is crucial for their climate and digital transformation.
