Japan and U.S. Agree to Collaborate on Seabed Mining

The arrangement could signal a fracture in the decades-long effort to reach consensus on ocean floor mining regulations.

Mar. 27, 2026 at 4:19pm

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The United States and Japan have signed a memorandum of cooperation to share research and insights from their respective forays into the fledgling deep sea mining industry. This marks an extraordinary public show of support for recent U.S. efforts to jumpstart the industry, according to diplomats and officials working on seabed issues.

Why it matters

Vast areas of the ocean floor are rich with valuable minerals, but mining them could pose technical challenges and potentially damage marine ecosystems. The U.S. has said it intends to issue permits for mining in international waters, which raises diplomatic questions given that international waters are not the domain of any one country.

The details

The non-legally binding memorandum lays out the countries' intentions to collaborate and was signed along with other economic and resource-focused partnership agreements after a meeting between President Trump and Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. It was then circulated at a meeting of the International Seabed Authority, the UN organization created to regulate the ocean floor in international waters, where 170 nations have spent a decade debating potential mining rules.

  • The memorandum of cooperation was signed last week.
  • The document was circulated at a semiannual meeting of the International Seabed Authority.

The players

United States

Has spent nearly a year pursuing deep sea mining without cooperation from the rest of the world.

Japan

Has agreed to share research and insights from its own forays into the deep sea mining industry with the United States.

International Seabed Authority

An independent organization created under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea to regulate the ocean floor in international waters.

President Trump

Met with Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, after which the memorandum of cooperation was signed.

Sanae Takaichi

The Prime Minister of Japan who met with President Trump.

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What’s next

The 170 nations that agreed to follow the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea will continue their decade-long debate over potential rules for mining international waters for metals and minerals.

The takeaway

The U.S. and Japan's collaboration on seabed mining could undermine the longstanding international effort to develop a consensus-based regulatory framework for this emerging industry, raising concerns about the potential environmental impacts of unilateral action in international waters.