Years ago I visited family in Chile, we mostly stayed in Santiago, but we took a side trip flying north to the Atacama Desert, which happens to be where the lit

Years ago I visited family in Chile, we mostly stayed in Santiago, but we took a side trip flying north to the Atacama Desert, which happens to be where the lithium mines are located. (Chile has the largest lithium reserves in the world, by far.) We were told most of the flights (737 sized aircraft) are usually full of miners on the flights. Most of the miners live in Santiago, fly up to Atacama to work for the week, then fly home at the end of the week. Even though we never saw the mines (we were sightseeing in other areas), after the trip, I got the impression that lithium mining in Chile is very big business, and if America wants a reliable source of lithium in the future, it should foster strong relations with Chile.