Access to an open market does not guarantee access to strategic materials. American purchases of Soviet titanium during the Cold War used dummy companies and smaller transactions to conceal the buyer. Political restrictions could therefore complicate a purchase even where the material was available. Scarcity creates a further problem because a willing trading partner may give its own country's needs priority. Supply planning has to account for behaviour under pressure as well as trade during plentiful years.
Notable Point · 30:23-32:05
Strategic materials can require concealed procurement
Cold War titanium purchases and domestic priorities during scarcity show why market access alone cannot assure supply.