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The East Turkistan Government in Exile (ETGE) has strongly condemned the newly proposed U.S.-China rare earth trade framework unveiled on Wednesday by U.S. President Donald J. Trump, warning that the agreement would facilitate the continued import of strategic minerals sourced from East Turkistan--an occupied nation undergoing genocide and widespread forced labor.
"This is not diplomacy; it is complicity," said Mamtimin Ala, President of the ETGE. "These minerals are soaked in the blood of enslaved Uyghurs. There is no neutral ground when dealing with China: either you stand against the Uyghur genocide, or you enable it." The ETGE noted that the proposed framework blatantly contradicts the U.S. government's genocide designation from January 2021 and violates the Uyghur Forced Labour Prevention Act, which prohibits goods linked to forced labour in East Turkistan from entering the U.S. market. A report by Global Rights Compliance documented dozens of Chinese state-linked firms operating in the region's mining sector under "labour transfer" programs--a euphemism for state-enforced forced labour. A report by Global Rights Compliance reveals that numerous Chinese state-affiliated companies in East Turkistan's mining and rare earth industries are involved in so-called "labour transfer" programs, an official term used to mask the systematic use of forced labour targeting Uyghurs and other Turkic ethnic groups. These practices are a core component of China's broader campaign of genocide, colonial domination, and resource exploitation in the region. "This proposed deal is a license for China to keep looting our homeland and enslaving our people," said Salih Hudayar, ETGE's Minister of Foreign Affairs. "If America still claims to stand for liberty and human dignity, it must stand with East Turkistan, not China." It is estimated that up to 20 percent of China's rare earth output originates from East Turkistan, where extraction occurs without local consent, under coercion, and with severe environmental degradation, as noted by ETGE. "East Turkistan is not China. Our people are oppressed, our lands exploited, and our wealth stolen," added Ala. "Every ton of rare earth exported under China's boot tightens the chains on our nation." The ETGE emphasized its readiness to work with democratic governments. "An independent East Turkistan, free from Chinese occupation, would be prepared to supply the United States and other democratic nations with critical minerals at competitive, and potentially discounted, rates," said Hudayar. "We call on the U.S. to abandon this framework and stand for justice." The East Turkistan Government in Exile calls on the United States to withdraw from the proposed trade agreement and take a principled stand by spearheading a global initiative to isolate the Chinese regime. It urges Washington to uphold justice by holding China accountable for its ongoing atrocities and to support the East Turkistani people in their legitimate struggle for freedom, sovereignty, and national independence. (ANI)
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