From Schwartz Media. I'm Daniel James. This is seven am. Julie Bishop built her career as a politician representing Australia on the world stage. Now she's taken on a new lobbying role, working for a company with ties to the Chinese government trying to mine uranium in Greenland. Her kit comes at a time when China and the US are ramping up their fight for domination in the Arctic, and
if she's successful, the benefit will flow to China. Today contributed to the Saturday Paper, Ben Abbottangelo on the mind that could ruin Greenland and what it means for Australia's national interest. It's Monday, March ten, Ben, thanks for joining us. How did you get on the Greenland Yeah?
I mean Greenland came into everyone's consciousness when Donald Trump was reelected and he continually mused about his desire to acquire the tiny micro state.
Well, we need Greenland for national security purposes. I've been told that for a long time, long before I even ran. I mean people have been talking about it for a long time.
He also doubled down on that at the State of the Union most recently.
And I also have a message tonight for the incredible people of Greenland.
Reaffirming his position that he'd love to acquire it, either by economic coercion or force.
And I think we're going to get it one way or the other. We're going to get it. We will keep you safe, we will make you rich, and together we will take Greenland to haights like you have never thought possible before. It's a very small.
Plot, and so I started looking into the region and quickly realized that Greenland, while it has an incredibly sparse population, has a vast stretch of land which is incredibly rich with critical minerals and incredibly important from a military perspective as well.
And we know that the race for critical minerals is really heating up. Can you tell me a little bit more about the opportunity that Trump sees in Greenland.
Yes, there's a few things that play here. The first point of context is is that the Arctic is incredibly important for the major players Russia, China, the United States to be able to control, communicate, and coordinate all of the satellites that are responsible for many of the things that we're accustomed to today. But why Greenland is really significant is, according to a recent Danish study thirty one of thirty four materials defined as critical by the EU,
like lithium and titanium, are found in Greenland. It's also incredibly rich with uranium and thought orium, and with the rising temperatures, the ice on Greenland is starting to recede. It means that the abundance of rare earth minerals deposited there are becoming more accessible. So there's already huge vested
interests that are circling Greenland. People like Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos are investors in mining projects there, and also people like Howard Lutnik, who is Trump's Commerce secretary.
A band of billionaires from Jeff Bezos to Michael Bloomberg and Bill Gates is all betting that below the surface of the hills and valleys on Greenland's Disco Island and Nusuwak Peninsula there's enough nickel, cobalt, and carpet to power hundreds of millions of electric vehicles.
But beyond those big names is a small Australian mining company that is also looking to exploit an incredibly rich deposit in the southern part of Greenland. And not only that, they're actually trying to sue the government there to get these interests off the ground.
All right, let's talk about this Australian company then, who are they and what are they trying to do in Greenland?
Yeah? So, Energy Transition Minerals is a junior mining company. They're Melbourne based listed on the ASX.
And I'm excited to be joined by someone I haven't actually spoken to you, Daniel Mavedo Blanco of Energy Transition Minerals. An exciting new company that is exploring in different assets areas of Western Europe, North America and obviously in Greenland.
Now they have one major interest in the south of Greenland called the Cavanafeld Project.
Jow us a brief overview.
Absolutely so. Our major project is the Quaniafield project. It's located in Greenland, the southern Battle of Greenland.
This project has the capacity to supply fifteen percent of the world's rare earth elements for advanced technology, manufacturing and advanced weaponry. So as a single deposit it is really significant.
Then, making it one of the largest rare earth projects outside of China.
Wow So, and the wake of Donald Trump's reelection, their share price over the following weeks surged by four hundred percent. But what's important to know about energy transition minerals is its deep links to CCP linked financiers and companies.
Yes, so the CCP the Chinese Communist Party. What are China's interests in Greenland and ETM in particular.
Yes, there's a few things that play here. The first point of context is that China dominates the rare earth's supply chain, and what a couple of Chinese linked companies are doing is they find predominantly junior mining companies around the world that have leases or exploitation lasners over critical
mineral deposits. What they then look to do is put in place agreements that allow them to obtain all of the minerals that are extracted from those deposits so that they all go back to China for processing, which enables them to maintain their monopoly over that critical minerals supply chain. But beyond that, military experts are saying that in these strategic areas like Greenland, that there's a military component to it.
The region is just critical for spacecraft and they want to be able to put dual senses and other technology in there that can enable them to effectively capture intelligence of their adversaries and potentially through time, be able to also sabotage them.
Right, so we've got ATM connected with Chinese interests looking to mine Greenland for its rare minerals. But in twenty twenty one that was derailed.
It was derailed. So in twenty twenty one the opposition party effectively went to the polls with a central promise that they would ban this proja due to fears about its close proximity to local populations, the very real concerns that it would have when it comes to people's health, the tourism sector, the environment itself, and they won the election.
Now, why has development of the project been held up recently?
Well, the main reason is the introduction of the Uranium Act or Act twenty by the Government of Greenland that came in.
And what that meant for energy transition Minerals and their Cavanifeld project is that it was immediately halted.
So it's a bit to navigate there right now.
Absolutely, but we've got a great team. We're working with worldwide experts in conflict resolution and getting around that issue.
Getting around that issue. What does that mean? How has ETM responded.
Etm's response was quite litigious. They've lodged a statement of claim in the courts and they are looking to sue the Greenland and Denmark governments for a aggering eleven point five billion dollars US, which is approximately four times Greenlands annual GDP, and they have retained the services of Australia's former Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop to support that.
After the break, what Julie Bishop got the job?
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Ben, You've been looking into this Australian mining company with links to China say they've hired former Foreign Minister Julie Bishop. Can you tell me about that?
Hmm.
So, Julie Bishop was hired in January of this year. It was off the back of Donald Trump's reelection. The company noted Bishop would provide support and counsel to its board to negotiate a win win, and it explicitly referenced her time as former Foreign minister when describing I suppose the contribution that she would make, saying she had quote an outstanding track record of working with governments around the world to deliver mutually beneficial outcomes.
Yes, so Julie Bishop's track record. She was Minister for Foreign Affairs for five years. As she's talked about her encounters with Trump in that time, so some strategic advantages for ETM there. Did you meet Donald Trump?
Yes, yes, Donald Alina.
I know you have to be diplomatic. I met the.
President on a number of occasions. He is unorthodox, he's very confident, self confident and again because I was Australia's Foreign Minister, he was very warm and welcoming.
But since retiring from politics, she's moved into the university sector and she's currently the chancellor of a and U.
It is a great honor to take up the role of chancellor of Australian National University. Without doubt, A and U is world class in terms of education.
That she can have this lobbying gig on top of her roll there.
Yeah, it's a great question. And I spoke with Jeffrey Watson sc who is a director at the Center of Public Integrity, and he was astonished that not only a former Foreign Minister, but also the Chancellor of a and you would use her skills and reputation on a project like this, and just asked, you know what's for sale here?
Is it Julie's reputation? Is it Australia's reputation? And I suppose, Yet it raises much broader questions around the very real fact that before this uranium band was put in place, all of the indicators were that all of the uranium and thorium that was extracted out of this project was going to go to China, was going to be processed by companies that are designated as advancing the modernization aims
of China. What does that mean for Australia. So we made repeated efforts to understand if the Australian National University was aware of Miss Bishop's role with ETM, but they declined to comment. We also asked Penny Wong So, the current Foreign Minister, if there was a concern that her predecessor was working with companies that have been deemed to
be out of line with Aushowia's national interest. But she also declined to comment, and we also reached out to the Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, but the Treasurer also declined to comment, so no one.
Wanted to talk to you about it. What do you think that says about politicians leaving office and taking these types of lobbying gigs where the benefit to Australia is actually quite questionable. What does that tell you?
It just makes me think that all persuasions, it feels within Australian politics are okay with leaving office and using the skills, the influence, the gravitas, the networks, the rolodecks that they've acquired during those roles to further advance their own aspirations. Christopher Pine was integral in defense and then is now a defense contractor. I mean, we think of Scott Morrison as well, who was bounced into a whole range of roles that are linked to Orcus and many
other significant policies that his government pushed through. I think everyone deserves to have a life post politics, but I think it's really alarming that you can use what you've acquired during that time.
So back to Greenland. The litigation is underway. This Australian government is suing the Greenland government. Julie Bishop is lobbying for them. So where do you expect this to land.
Ben, So we're on the eve of Greenland's election. The current party that is seeking reelection has doubled down on the fact that it will maintain the uranium ban. But the opposition party who is putting itself forward for this election has refused to say whether or not they will keep or repeal that uranium ban. So it is high stakes for Greenlanders and for energy transition minerals and Julie Bishop.
And I suppose there's still those circling question marks around the US, China, Russia who all want to have their noses in the Greenland trough.
I didn't see Greenland on my Bingo card ticket this year as being the talking point that it is. But thank you for your reporting and thank you for coming in and speaking to us.
Thank you.
You can read Ben Abbotangelo and Rochel Hoffman's story about Julie Bishop and the Greenland mining project at The Saturday Paper dot com dot A. You also in the news today. Six soldiers have serious injuries after an accident near Lismore on Saturday night. Two military trucks rolledwide doing clearance work in the flood affected area. The soldiers from the Gallipoli Barracks in Brisbane are now being treated in the hospital
to aur in a serious condition. And Wa Premier Roger Cook has won his first election as premier as Labour swept a victory in the state election for a third consecutive time. The ABC election analyst to Anthony Green sa that the result was disastrous for the Liberal Party and pointed to a significant recovery in the Greens vote after the party underperformed last time around. I'm Daniel James. This is seven am. We'll be back tomorrow. Don't anything you