Joe Hockey: There’s a Deal to be Done with Trump on Critical Minerals

The West Australian | August 19, 2025

Former US ambassador Joe Hockey has attested he “knows there is a deal to be done” between US President Trump and Australia’s critical minerals riches, in a sobering interview where he also divulged how an assassination attempt changed the world leader.

As Australia’s man in Washington during Trump’s first term as President, Mr Hockey had a fron- row seat observing a politician he now believes could be “the most powerful and influential figure in American politics since Teddy Roosevelt”.

And despite Australian PM Anthony Albanese’s difficulties in securing a meeting with Mr Trump, the former Federal treasurer is convinced there is scope for a deal with Uncle Sam involving rare earths supplies and battery minerals.

“Modern militaries, modern national security, is defined by the reliability and innovation in its supply chain,” he told the Resources Technology Showcase on Tuesday.

“There is a deal to be done with President Trump, I know this, on critical minerals. He wants Australia to be party to that. We have a number of legislative advantages in Washington, DC that put us to the top of the list.”

After a career that included serving as treasurer in the Abbott government, Mr Hockey founded lobbying and advisory firm Bondi Partners in Washington DC, where he currently lives, in early 2020.

Despite being on the other side of the political aisle to Federal Resources Minister Madeleine King, Mr Hockey backed in the Labor Government’s approach to shoring up local supplies and building up processing capacity on home soil.

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