Washington showdown: Trump and Zelensky to seal mineral pact

According to the "Financial Times," both parties have negotiated a draft agreement in which the USA relinquishes claims to $500 billion in potential revenues from exploiting these resources. The British daily was the first to report that a fund is planned to be established, into which Ukraine would contribute 50% of revenues from the "future monetisation" of state-owned mineral resources, including oil and gas, as well as related logistics. This fund would invest in projects in Ukraine.

The Trump administration has been pushing for an agreement since the beginning of February that would grant the USA access to Ukrainian rare earth metal deposits. According to Washington, this is supposed to be a form of payment for American assistance provided to Kyiv. Donald Trump claims that the USA has spent $300 or $350 billion on aid to Ukraine, although in reality, this amount is at most half that. People close to Trump also argue that an "economic partnership" with the USA would guarantee Ukraine's future.

Meanwhile, according to Zelensky, Ukraine owes nothing to the United States, which is expected to be confirmed by the final version of the agreement, set to be signed on Friday. The Ukrainian President said on Wednesday that Ukrainian officials have a very positive view of the draft agreement and believe it "may work."

Zelensky emphasized that his key point in the draft agreement is that Ukraine is not portrayed as a debtor, contrary to media reports. He clarified that the deal does not mention a debt of $500 billion, $350 billion, or even $150 billion, stressing that including such a clause would be unjust to Ukraine.

He also emphasised that Ukraine must know what it can expect from the USA in relation to the agreement and announced that he intends to directly ask Trump whether he will suspend military aid to Kyiv. - This is the beginning, this is just a framework agreement for now - he clarified in a conversation with journalists, noting that "this agreement could become a great success or simply disappear."

The Ukrainska Pravda portal published the agreement's text on Wednesday. The portal noted that the document concerns "the establishment of rules and conditions for the Reconstruction Investment Fund." The governments of the United States and Ukraine are parties to the agreement, and no provision stipulates that Ukraine will receive security guarantees from the USA.

According to Trump, the mere agreement on resources would guarantee Ukraine's security.

"We're going to be working over there. We'll be on the land, and you know, that way it's this sort of automatic security, because nobody's going to be messing around with our people when we're there," the American President assured.

The agreement between the United States and Ukraine, which will be signed on Friday, foresees the creation of a Reconstruction Investment Fund. The fund will be financed, among other things, by extracting deposits, including oil and gas. Ukraine will contribute 50% of the revenues from this source, according to the Europejska Pravda portal.

The first point of the agreement states that the governments of both countries will establish a Reconstruction Investment Fund, co-managed by them, to achieve lasting peace in Ukraine. The fund will include joint property, which will be defined by a separate Fund Agreement drawn up later. The agreement will also contain details on managing the Fund and its activities. The maximum percentage of ownership and financial interests in the Fund and the USA's government representatives' powers regarding decision-making will be determined based on current US legislation.

Neither party to the agreement "will sell or transfer" any part of their share in the Fund without the other party's written consent.

The next point states that the Fund will invest in projects in Ukraine and attract investments to increase the development, exploitation, and monetisation of all state-owned and private assets. The parties reserve the right to take actions necessary to protect and maximise the value of their economic interests in the Fund.

Ukraine's valuable mineral resources are estimated at $15 trillion, according to Andrzej Jagielski, an expert at the State Geological Institute. According to him, gaining access to Ukrainian deposits would enable the USA to challenge China's dominance.

As an expert from the Polish Geological Institute notes, Ukraine currently has some of the largest deposits of critical raw materials in Europe, essential for developing space, defence, and energy technologies. The country is one of the ten most significant holders of documented titanium deposits, and when it comes to lithium, Ukraine has one third of Europe’s resources. In addition, the country possesses considerable amounts of tantalum, niobium, beryllium, cobalt, nickel, and graphite.

The human utilisation of these resources represents a tremendous leap in civilisational development, comparable to the transition from the Stone Age to the Iron Age, said Andrzej Jagielski.

He added that countries with access to these resources will be able to develop much faster and decide where these valuable minerals will go. This means - he explained - that they will determine the pace of development of different world regions.