Gyeongju, South Korea - In an interview published on Saturday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said China made a major "mistake" when they instituted controls on rare earth exports.

Bessent argued in a Financial Times interview that China's export controls on rare earths were a "mistake" because they drew attention to Beijing's ability to use them as a coercive tool.

"China has alerted everyone to the danger. They've made a real mistake," Bessent argued. "It's one thing to put the gun on the table. It's another thing to fire shots in the air."

"I don’t think they’re able to do it now because we have offsetting measures," Bessent said, before claiming that China's leverage over the US on rare earths was rapidly declining and wouldn't last more than 12 to 24 months.

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"I think the Chinese leadership were slightly alarmed by the global backlash to their export controls."

Beijing announced new controls in October on the export of technologies related to rare earths, immediately triggering a harsh response from Washington, as President Donald Trump slapped massive new levies on China.

China pushed back immediately, raging against Washington's "double standards" and vowing to "fight to the end." The Trump administration was then forced to backpedal on its tariff threats.

Bessent praised Trump's trade row, as well as his relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping, and said that the president's efforts had made Beijing want to "find areas of co-operation" with the US.

"They were both looking forward to being in the room and moving things forward, rather than the choppy situation that we've been in since the spring," Bessent said of the two leaders' meeting on Thursday.

"They realized that stability between the two countries is important, for both economies and for the global economy."