How Ukraine Trump put a deal for critical minerals

For Ukraine, it is an audio game that plays in a constant appeal to President Trump for more financial and military support. For Mr. Trump, they should be late for billions of dollars committed to Kiev Al -Harbi’s effort.

In both cases, the wide and valuable metal resources in Ukraine became a prominent component of maneuvering the country’s future.

Last week, Mr. Trump again and again The idea of ​​circulating American aid for critical minerals in Ukraine pushed. He said Fox News On Monday, he wanted “the equivalent of $ 500 billion in rare land”, a group of decisive minerals for many high -tech products, for American aid. He said that Ukraine “mainly agreed to do so.”

For Ukraine, it is important that Mr. Trump, who has long been skeptical of American aid to Kev, finds a way to maintain the support he finds palatable. But the famous mercury president can still change his opinion, and even his statements about a mysterious deal about whether he wanted Ukraine minerals for previous or future aid – or a mixture of the two.

Mr. Trump’s proposal followed a campaign launched by Kiev in the fall to attract the American president’s mindset by discussing profitable energy deals and emphasizing that defending Ukraine is in line with American economic interests.

The campaign included a meeting between Mr. Trump and President Voludimir Zellinski and trips to the United States by Ukrainian officials to make deals to exploit lithium and vitanium – vital to producing technologies such as electric batteries. It also included support from influential political figures such as Republican Senator Lindsey Graham.

The campaign was launched after the politically connected American investors began to show interest in Ukraine’s underground wealth in late 2023, despite the war that has been raging since 2022. Concertium including Techmet, an energy investment company partly owned by a government The United States, and Ronald S. Lauder, a rich friend of Mr. Trump, participated with Kyiv to give bids in the Ukrainian Li -Biithium field, according to a message to Mr. Zellinski, who was reviewed by the New York Times.

Mr. Lauder and the heir of cosmetics The idea was planted in the mind of Mr. Trump to buy resource -rich GreenlandHe said through a spokesman that he had not discussed Ukrainian minerals directly with Mr. Trump, but “he raised the issue with stakeholders in the United States and Ukraine for many years to this day.”

While Mr. Trump is pushing for peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, Kiev’s campaign on critical minerals confirmed Mr. Zelinski’s advanced strategy to maintain American support. By staying away from the moral calls he used with the Biden administration, he embraced the most closer transactions to Mr. Trump’s style. Mr. Zelinski recently said he would also be interested in buying American LNG.

Talk to Reuters On Friday, Mr. Zellinski said: “If we were talking about a deal, then let’s do a deal.”

On Tuesday, US Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessin, met Mr. Zellinski in Kiev, on the occasion of the first visit by the Trump administration official to Ukraine. Mr. Bessent was sent by Mr. Trump to Explore what a deal for Ukraine minerals may look like.

Speaking from the Ukrainian Presidential Palace, Mr. Pesen said that the United States “wants to obtain an economic cooperation agreement and in exchange for this agreement, the United States will continue to provide material support to Ukraine.”

The idea of ​​taking advantage of metal resources in Ukraine was not formed last summer. Kyiv was a formulation for herVictory Plan“A strategy aimed at ending the war on favorable conditions for Ukraine, and wanted to persuade its allies to maintain their support despite the high war.

Ukrainian officials were particularly concerned about a possible return to Mr. Trump’s authority, who pledged to cut military and financial aid to Ukraine, according to Ukrainian officials and legislators.

Their attention was caught by an argument through Trump’s ally: Mr. Graham, who was raising the case that Ukraine was “sitting on a golden mine” of critical minerals. “If we help Ukraine now, they may become the best commercial partner that we have never dreamed of.” He said Last June. His message is strengthened video With Mr. Zellinski in September.

The Ukrainian authorities say that the country has almost deposits Half 50 minerals set by the United States as critical For its economy and national security. the Kyiv College for Economics Ukraine says it has the largest titanium reserves in Europe and a third of the lithium reserves on the continent.

Classes like SECDEVA Canadian company, reserves valued by several trillion dollars. But some deposits cannot be reached because they are in the lands occupied by Russian. Experts warn that exploiting mineral reserves can be an expensive and long process, with the need for new surveys to accurately assess their potential.

In the November 2023 speech to Mr. Zellinski, Brian Minell, President of Techmet, sought help to launch an attempt to exploit the state -owned Lithum field in central Ukraine. The message called Mr. Lauder, the private investment company in Texas, and other American and international investors as assistants.

Mr. Minell and other Energy CEOs meet Mr. Zellinski in New York in September. It is not clear if they discussed the offer, which has not been launched yet. “Techmet, along with our partners, is available to move forward with more work if the American governments and the United States are asking us to do so,” Mr. Mainel said in a statement.

Kyiv then decided to provide allies to reach critical metals as part of the victory plan. Mr. Zelinski The plan was presented to Mr. Trump during a meeting in New York in late September.

During the first period of Mr. Trump, when the Kremlin -backed forces were already waging war in eastern Ukraine, Kiev Support was won by himIncluding arms supplies, by buying coal from an important manifestation, Pennsylvania.

Part of Ukraine’s argument now is to emphasize that if it is lost the war, its mineral resources will fall into the hands of Russia and its allies like China, which already dominates the global market for such materials.

John E said. Hervs, the former American ambassador to Ukraine and a senior director of the Eurasia Center in the Atlantic Council, said that the Ukraine Stadium was a clear sale of Mr. Trump.

“It involves vast energy resources, and economically valuable assets are not abundant in the Western world, and it is a way to strip other competitors, including China, of their influence over the United States.” “It is irrational.”

Last fall, work was underway to finish the touches on an agreement with the Biden administration and signing it to cooperate in mineral extraction and processing. But the Ukrainian authorities decided that Delay the signature of the deal And present it to Mr. Trump instead so that he can claim credit for that.

Then a Ukrainian delegation led by Yulia Sfridinko, Minister of Economy, traveled to New York and Washington in December to attend meetings with American officials and business representatives, with critical minerals as a central topic.

Mrs. Svydenko has determined potential energy deals, including acquisition of production licenses for critical minerals. A presentation, seen in the Times, stressed that Ukraine “is able to build the entire value chain to meet us and demand the metal titanium of the European Union for 25 years.”

Matthew Murray, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Consultative Council of the Vegeta, an Ukrainian titanium extraction company, said that Mrs. Sveridinco asked him and other American business representatives to help them present the Ukraine case to the Trump administration.

“We have spent a great deal of this meeting we are talking about critical raw materials,” said Mr. Murray. He added that the exploitation of these resources can become a new column for the relationship of the United States of Ukraine.

What shaped this column that this column may still have to be seen.

The draft of the Kiev’s agreement, which was reviewed by the Times, included pledges only to exchange information and experience in potential partnerships. It did not include any financial obligations and was not binding. It is unclear whether Kiev and Washington will agree to align the recent proposals of Mr. Trump.

One of the ideas in Washington was giving Ukraine a loan to buy American weapons, with the possibility of access to critical minerals as a guarantee. This proposal may be in line with Mr. Trump’s vision, who talked about obtaining a “guarantee” for continuous American assistance.

“There are many steps that have not yet been taken, but the concept is very viable,” he said.

Marianne Breeshayznaok has contributed to the reports.