Zelensky, minerals and mayhem: Trump fumes as Ukraine hesitates on rare earths deal. US and Ukraine flags painted on a concrete wall.
Credit: Shutterstock, Tomas Ragina
A high-stakes minerals deal between Washington and Kyiv is hanging by a thread – and Donald Trump isn’t hiding his fury.
The former US president let rip aboard Air Force One on Sunday, March 30, claiming Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is “trying to back out” of a critical rare earth minerals agreement. The deal, still under negotiation, would give the US sweeping access to Ukraine’s lucrative natural resources – from oil and gas to rare earths essential for tech and defence.
“He’s trying to back out of the rare earth deal and if he does that, he’s got some problems. Big, big problems,” Trump warned reporters in classic bluster, before throwing another jab: “He wants to be a member of NATO, but he’s never going to be a member of NATO. He understands that.”
Deal or no deal?
At the heart of the drama is a minerals agreement that was originally floated after Zelensky’s visit to the White House in February. That version never got over the finish line. But now, a newly revived proposal from the US Treasury Department is back on the table – and it’s much more ambitious.
The draft deal, obtained by CNN, would cover not just rare earths but all mineral resources across Ukraine. Ukrainian enterprises would be required to pour funds into a joint US-Ukraine investment fund – overseen by a five-member board, with three from Washington and only two from Kyiv. Unsurprisingly, this power imbalance has triggered alarm bells in Ukrainian political circles.
Zelensky hasn’t slammed the brakes – yet – but he’s made it clear he’s not happy with the moving goalposts.
Speaking last Thursday, March 27, the Ukrainian president explained: “We have consistently shown our positive signals. We are for cooperation with the United States. But it’s too early to talk about the agreement, which has been changed several times.”
Zelensky claimed that Kyiv had agreed to a framework deal – to be fleshed out later through more research and parliamentary scrutiny. But the US wanted the full deal inked right away.
Security guarantees for Ukraine? Nowhere in sight
For Kyiv, the elephant in the room is security. The deal makes no mention of concrete guarantees in Ukraine’s fight against Russia – a key sticking point for Zelensky.
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