Donald Trump has signed a controversial executive order aimed at stepping up deep-sea mining within US and in international waters.
The move to allow exploration outside its national waters has been met by condemnation from China which said it "violates" international law.
Thursday's order is the latest issued by the US president to try to increase America's access to minerals used by the aerospace, green technology and healthcare sectors.
The deep sea contains billions of tonnes of potato-shaped rocks, called polymetallic nodules, which are rich in critical minerals like cobalt and rare earths.