Pak PM Sharif, Army Chief Munir Present Rare Earth Minerals To Trump During White House Meeting

<p>A newly surfaced photograph from Donald Trump&rsquo;s White House meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Asim Munir has drawn fresh attention to the high-profile talks, capturing the leaders presenting rare earth minerals to the US President.</p>
<p>The image, taken inside the Oval Office, shows General Munir pointing towards an open wooden box containing the minerals while Trump looks on. Standing beside them, Sharif appears with a faint smile, highlighting the symbolic exchange during the meeting.</p>
<p>Sharif, the first Pakistani prime minister to visit the White House in six years, and Munir held discussions with Trump on Thursday. Notably, Munir had already met Trump in June during a rare one-on-one meeting. Thursday&rsquo;s session lasted nearly ninety minutes and also included US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.</p>
<p>In a statement issued by his office, Sharif praised Trump as a &ldquo;man of peace,&rdquo; commending his &ldquo;courageous and decisive&rdquo; role in brokering a ceasefire between Pakistan and India. He also thanked the U.S. President for the tariff arrangement finalised earlier this year, under which Washington imposed a 19 per cent tariff on Pakistani imports while agreeing to assist in developing Pakistan&rsquo;s oil reserves.</p>
<p>Expressing optimism, Sharif said he believed the Pakistan-U.S. partnership would continue to grow stronger under Trump&rsquo;s leadership. He extended an invitation to American companies to invest in key sectors, including agriculture, information technology, energy, and mining.</p>
<p>The meeting marked a significant shift in bilateral relations, which had endured years of strain before gradually improving in recent months.</p>
<h2>US Interest in Pakistan&rsquo;s Minerals</h2>
<p>The talks coincided with growing U.S. interest in Pakistan&rsquo;s vast mineral reserves. Earlier this month, Pakistan&rsquo;s Frontier Works Organisation, the country&rsquo;s largest critical mineral miner, signed a memorandum of understanding with Missouri-based U.S. Strategic Metals. The agreement includes plans to establish a poly-metallic refinery in Pakistan.</p>
<p>U.S. Strategic Metals specialises in producing and recycling critical minerals, which the U.S. Department of Energy has classified as essential for advanced manufacturing and clean energy technologies.</p>
<p>In addition, Pakistan&rsquo;s National Logistics Corp signed a separate deal with Portuguese engineering and construction giant Mota-Engil Group.</p>
<p>According to Sharif&rsquo;s office, discussions with delegations from both U.S. Strategic Metals and Mota-Engil centred on Pakistan&rsquo;s copper, gold, rare earths, and other mineral assets. Both sides expressed readiness to boost mineral processing capacity, develop value-added facilities, and launch large-scale mining projects.&nbsp;</p>