US to Pursue Seabed Mining With Cook Islands After China Pact

The US has entered talks with the Cook Islands to develop seabed mineral resources, just months after the South Pacific nation formalized cooperation pacts with China that included exploration for undersea deposits.

The arrangement, unveiled during the Cook Islands’ 60th anniversary of self-government, will include joint efforts to map the island nation’s Exclusive Economic Zone, which is “one of the most promising regions for deep-sea mineral deposits,” the US State Department said in a statement Tuesday.