Zelenskiy says US proposed ‘large, comprehensive’ minerals deal

The US has offered Kyiv a new version of the minerals deal that extends beyond the framework agreed last month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told reporters on Tuesday.The proposed new deal follows last Friday’s media brief by US President Donald Trump before his Cabinet meeting that an agreement will be “signed soon”.The two countries were initially open to signing a deal back in February, but that was called off following a heated clash between Trump and Zelenskiy at the White House.While details of the “new minerals deal” are undisclosed, Zelenskiy has confirmed the proposal does not include US involvement in its nuclear power sector, as Trump had suggested previously. All he could say was that the deal represents a “large, comprehensive agreement”.One Ukrainian official told the Financial Times that Washington had brought up the nuclear issue in discussions but did not include it in the new proposal. Zelenskiy previously confirmed that the countries had conversations about the Zaporizhzhia power plant, which is Europe’s largest and now under Russian control, but talks did not go beyond that.“Previously, we had a framework agreement, followed by the development of a full agreement. Now, the American side has proposed a grand agreement right away,” the Ukrainian President said on Tuesday.Commenting on the proposed new deal, a US Treasury spokesperson told FT that “the United States remains committed to the quick conclusion of this vital agreement and to securing a lasting peace for both Ukraine and Russia.”Under the previous framework, the minerals agreement would establish a fund to which Ukraine would contribute 50% of proceeds from the future profits of the extraction of state-owned natural resources.Various reports have suggested that Ukraine holds upwards of $10 trillion in mineral deposits, including those containing rare earth elements that are key raw materials in defense and high-tech applications. However, these deposits have yet to be internationally recognized as economically viable. Ukrainian data shows that the country has deposits of 22 of the 34 minerals identified by the EU as critical.Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com