Ukraine agrees to Trump's mineral deal
The deal is said to give the US half of future profits from the industry, but makes no mention of security guarantees.
Kiev has agreed to US President Donald Trump's mineral deal, the Financial Times, Bloomberg and AFP reported on February 25. AFP, citing an unnamed Ukrainian official, said the document could be signed as early as February 28.
"Currently, government officials are working on the details. As of now, we are considering going to Washington on February 28 to sign the agreement," the official said.
Mr Trump has demanded “the equivalent of $500 billion” in natural resources as compensation for the US support provided to Kiev during its conflict with Russia. The proposal was initially made by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent during a visit to Kiev earlier this month, but Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky rejected it due to the lack of security guarantees.
The Financial Times reported that Ukraine agreed to sign the deal after the US dropped its demand for $500 billion in resource revenues. Kiev disputed the figure, claiming that Washington had actually provided Ukraine with only about $100 billion in aid.
The agreement also does not include any security guarantees from the United States, which Mr. Zelensky has repeatedly requested, according to the newspaper. However, tying Kiev to the United States through economic ties would create a “de facto security shield,” Bloomberg wrote on February 25, citing U.S. officials.
The final draft, dated February 24 and seen by Bloomberg, would require Kiev to create a fund and earmark 50% of revenues from “future commercialization” of state-owned mineral resources, including oil, gas and related logistics. The fund would invest in Ukrainian industries.
According to the Financial Times, this commercialization will not include resources that already generate revenue for the Ukrainian government, such as the country's gas and oil companies Naftogaz or Ukrnafta. However, the document reportedly does not specify what percentage of the fund Washington will hold. The terms of the "joint ownership" arrangements will be determined in future agreements, the Financial Times said.
The agreement states that Washington intends to make “financial commitments to support Ukraine,” but the level of this support will be determined later, Ukrainska Pravda wrote on February 25.
Kiev officials told the Financial Times that the country's justice, economy and foreign ministers had approved the deal.
Mr Zelensky will need to get approval from the Ukrainian parliament in the coming days. The country’s cabinet is expected to recommend signing the agreement on February 26, Bloomberg wrote, citing unnamed Kiev officials.
