Qatar has become the eighth country to sign the Pax Silica Declaration, an initiative aimed at enhancing economic security through collaboration on technology and critical minerals. The signing took place today, with Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg representing the United States and Minister of State for Foreign Trade Affairs Ahmed bin Mohammed Al-Sayed representing Qatar.
According to a joint statement, “Together, the United States of America and Qatar affirm a new geopolitical consensus that economic security is national security, and national security is economic security. Qatar’s leadership and commitment to investing in secure energy, advanced technology, and critical minerals supply chains make it an indispensable partner in this effort, placing Qatar in the vanguard of nations that will drive the next stage of global economic growth.”
The agreement commits both countries to strengthen their partnership by improving supply chain security, reducing dependencies that could pose risks, and supporting trusted technology ecosystems. The two governments plan to collaborate on projects related to digital infrastructure, semiconductors, advanced manufacturing, logistics, mineral processing, and energy.
“Pax Silica is an economic security coalition built for the AI age. This is the first time countries are organizing around compute, silicon, minerals, and energy as shared strategic assets,” according to information released about the declaration.
With Qatar’s accession as a signatory—joining Australia, Israel, Japan, Republic of Korea, Singapore, and the United Kingdom—the coalition continues its expansion. Additional countries are expected to join in future rounds.
The statement described Pax Silica as “a positive-sum partnership of nations that want to remain competitive and prosperous.”
