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The US president says he hopes Ukrainian leaders will sign an agreement on Friday to jointly develop natural resources.
The US and Ukraine have reached a deal that provides access to European countries’ rare earth minerals and other natural ammunition, President Donald Trump said.
Speaking at the White House on Tuesday, Trump previously confirmed an earlier report that he had reached an agreement with Ukrainian President Voldimi Zelensky to develop important minerals.
“I’ve heard he’s coming on Friday. Certainly, if he wants to, it’s fine for me. And he wants to sign with me. That’s a big deal, and very I think it’s a big deal,” Trump told reporters for Oval Office.
Trump said the deal is worth $1 trillion and would guarantee that American taxpayers “recover the money and a plus.”
“We are spending hundreds of billions of dollars on Russia and Ukraine to fight a war that would never have happened.”
When asked what Kiev would get in return, Trump cited $350 billion worth of aid and “right to fight military equipment,” which he claimed was already offered.
According to Congressional Research Services, the US Congress allocated $174 billion to Ukraine between 2022 and 2024.
Trump’s comments followed media reports that Washington and Kiev had reached an agreement after Zelensky rejected an earlier draft that would have previously concluded Ukrainian natural resources rights worth $500 million.
Rare earth minerals caught up in the Ukrainian war, Russian rule, and global power struggles
The breakthrough is because Ukraine hopes to repair relations with the Trump administration amid tensions surrounding his decision to remove Kiev from negotiations with Moscow to end the war.
Trump’s outreach on Russian President Vladimir Putin and his verbal attacks on Zelensky raise concerns in Kiev and European capitals, which tend to bring a quick end to the conflict on terms that support Moscow That’s what it is.
Trump last week branded Zelensky as a “dictator” over his decision to suspend Moscow’s post-2022 elections, and defended Ukrainian leaders’ efforts to create peace, saying he was able to make a living. He criticized the possibility of continuing the “gravy train” with US aid.
A report from Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford said Ukrainian officials believe Zelenki’s cabinet on Wednesday would recommend a contract with Trump.
“This is very important because, according to the Ukrainians we’ve spoken to all week, this is. [deal] Donald Trump is basically seen as a way to get what he wants,” Stratford said.
Zelenskyy initially refused the deal because “there were not sufficient security guarantees,” but Stratford said Trump has applied “several additional pressure since.”
Although no details of the transaction have been confirmed, several media outlets have reported that it will contribute 50% of revenue from future monetization to jointly owned funds that Ukraine invests in projects in Ukraine.
The draft text reportedly does not include any express US security guarantees.
The Financial Times, which first reported on the transaction, said the size of Washington’s interest in the fund has not yet been determined.
Matthew Sussex, a visiting fellow at the Australian National University’s Center for Strategic and Defense Studies, said the deal would give Washington and Kiev “a way to reset after the recent war of words.”
“As I understand, the US is watering that demand quite a bit. Matthew Sussex, a visiting fellow at the Australian National University Center for Strategic and Defense Research, has said that even if security guarantees are not attached, It doesn’t come with a security guarantee, but it makes it even tasty. I told Al Jazeera.
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