YOKOHAMA, Japan, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Japan and the United States agreed on the need to address the problem of relying too much on a single country for production and supply of rare earths, a Japanese government official said on Wednesday.
Japanese Trade Minister Akihiro Ohata and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg, meeting on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ministerial meeting in Japan, also sought cooperation on rare earth recycling and developing alternative materials, the official said.
China, which accounts for 97 percent of global output of the elements used in high-tech devices, windmills, batteries and some weaponry, strictly controls their trade, despite pressure from the United States and Japan to loosen export constraints.
"In the medium and long-term ... based on the shared recognition on the issue of overly lop-sided production and supply (of rare earths) by one country, there were exchanges on cooperating on possible measures such as developing alternative materials and recycling," the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told reporters after Ohata and Steinberg met.
Chinese customs officials have imposed broad shipment restrictions on rare earth exports to Japan after Japan detained a Chinese fishing boat captain whose trawler collided with Japanese patrol boats near disputed islands in the East China Sea in September. He was later released and sent home.
The incident followed China's announcement in July that it would slash export quotas for rare earths by 40 percent.
Washington has called restrictions on the minerals a potential threat to the U.S. economy and national security.
Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan and President Barack Obama will meet on Saturday on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Yokohama, just south of Tokyo.
Canada's trade minister told Reuters China's approach to supplying rare earth minerals to the world was troubling but presented an opportunity for resource-rich Canada to step up to the plate.
"Everybody is concerned about supply of rare earths," Peter Van Loan told Reuters on Wednesday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting. "The approach of the Chinese is troubling because it is not a market approach that they've adopted."
"For a country like Canada, we do think this represents a long-term opportunity. We're a country rich in resources including rare earths, and I expect and hope that we'll be able to take some steps in the long term and medium term to meet some of those market needs," he said in an interview. (Reporting by Yoko Kubota; editing by Bill Tarrant)