CUSTOMS GOVERNANCE AND GEOECONOMIC LAW: STRATEGIC TRADE POLICY FOR CRITICAL MINERALS IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

Critical minerals such as nickel and lithium are increasingly central to global supply chains, clean energy transitions, and geopolitical competition. This study examines strategic trade policy through the lens of customs governance and geoeconomic law, focusing on how states deploy export controls, industrial downstreaming, and mineral ownership regimes to shape economic power. Using a comparative analysis, this research investigates Indonesia’s nickel export ban and downstream industrialization, Chile’s public–private lithium governance model, and Australia’s critical minerals strategy built on regulatory certainty and market openness. The methodology combines legal doctrinal analysis, policy benchmarking, and trade flow interpretation, drawing on WTO disciplines, national mining laws, and critical minerals policy documents. Results show that Indonesia’s resource nationalism prioritizes domestic value capture but invites WTO scrutiny; Chile leverages state intervention to secure technological upgrading; and Australia balances foreign investment, strategic alliances, and environmental standards. The findings suggest that effective critical mineral governance requires synchronized design across law, economics, and public policy to achieve resilience, industrialization, and strategic autonomy.