Russia-Ukraine War: Trump, Zelenskyy ink major deal for Ukraine’s minerals, agree to…; key takeaways from the agreement
Russia-Ukraine war: Amid efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war, the United States and Ukraine have signed a new deal that gives America access to some of Ukraine’s natural resources. This agreement, which took months to prepare, also creates an investment fund. Ukraine hopes this will help secure long-term support from the US as it continues to fight off Russia, three years after the war began.
Now, the deal is public, both countries have made official statements about it. Here are a few important points about the US-Ukraine agreement, as reported by the BBC.
Ukraine won’t have to pay the US back
US President Donald Trump had previously said that Ukraine should return the $350 billion (around £264 billion) he claims the US has given during the war. But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky disagreed with this.
According to Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, the new agreement clearly says Ukraine doesn’t have to pay back any kind of ‘debt’.
Even so, Trump has claimed this deal is a win for his side too, saying that the US will now get back ‘much more in theory’ than what was spent under President Joe Biden’s leadership.
Stronger US words against Putin
The way the US talked about the deal shows a tougher attitude toward Russia than what we usually hear from the Trump administration.
The agreement clearly calls it, ‘Russia’s full-scale invasion’, and the US Treasury Department said that no country or person who helped fund or supply Russia’s war efforts will be allowed to take part in rebuilding Ukraine.
This stronger language is likely to please Kyiv, which has been asking the US to put more pressure on Russia during talks about a possible ceasefire.
Oil and gas will be part of the deal
While most attention has been on Ukraine’s minerals, the deal also includes oil, natural gas, and other fuels.
Even with this joint access, Ukraine will still be holding its ownership on all of its resources. The US will only help in using and investing in them. Adding oil and gas is seen as a change in Ukraine’s earlier position, as these were not included in the initial drafts of the deal.
US officials told the media that these resources could be even more valuable if the war ends soon.
Deal won’t block Ukraine’s EU plans
Ukraine wanted to join the European Union for a long time, and official talks about it had already begun in June last year.
Some Ukrainian officials were worried that this new resources deal might cause problems with the EU, especially if it gave special treatment to American companies, since Ukraine and the EU already work closely on raw materials.
However, the deal clearly states that the US respects Ukraine’s goal of joining the EU and agrees that the deal should not go against that goal.
It also says that if Ukraine needs to change parts of the deal later because of new EU rules, the US is ready to negotiate those changes positively.
On top of that, Ukraine says the US will help bring more investment and technology into the country, not just from America, but also from the EU and other partners.
US military support may continue
The US has made it clear that this deal is important if Ukraine wants to keep receiving American military help.
Ukraine’s First Deputy Prime Minister, Yulia Svyrydenko, who traveled to Washington to sign the deal, said it includes plans for future US support, like providing air defence systems. This would be a shift in Trump’s approach, as he has tried to reduce military aid to Ukraine since returning to the White House.
One big question now is how this deal might affect the war going forward. So far, Russia’s government has not reacted to the agreement.
The US can back out anytime
The deal does not include any rigid security promises from the US, which is something Ukraine and Europe have been asking for.
Trump has always been hesitant to offer the same level of military support that Joe Biden gave. Right now, Trump’s support seems to depend more on the economic parts of the deal, rather than a clear military promise.
This means the US, Ukraine’s most important ally, could still pull back its support at any time, making the future of the partnership insecure.
Profits may be reinvested in Ukraine
Ukraine’s government says that for the first 10 years, all profits from the investment fund will be fully reinvested into Ukraine’s economy, either for rebuilding or for starting new projects.
This could be important, as it means the US might not earn any direct profit for a decade. However, this part isn’t clearly written in the deal signed in Washington. It may be added later through a separate ‘technical’ agreement. Ukraine’s Deputy PM Svyrydenko posted on social media that these terms are still being discussed.
After the first 10 years, Ukraine says profits could be shared between both sides. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News that the deal gives Americans a chance to recover some of the money and weapons given to Ukraine and to be part of the country’s recovery.
Speaking from the White House, Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller called the agreement a kind of ‘repayment’ for the large amount of US taxpayer money spent during the war.
Let’s take a quick look at the minerals Ukraine has and how they are used?
Kyiv estimates that about 5% of the world’s ‘critical raw materials’ are found in Ukraine.
This includes around 19 million tonnes of graphite, making Ukraine one of the top five countries in supplying this mineral. Graphite is important for making batteries for electric vehicles.
Ukraine also holds 7% of Europe’s titanium supplies, a lightweight metal used in everything from airplanes to power plants.
Along with that, the country has a third of all the lithium deposits in Europe. Lithium is important for making modern batteries.
Ukraine also has important reserves of beryllium and uranium, which are essential for nuclear weapons and reactors.
Other valuable minerals include copper, lead, zinc, silver, nickel, cobalt, and manganese. Moreover, Ukraine has prominent deposits of rare earth metals, a group of 17 elements used in weapons, wind turbines, electronics, and other important products.
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