Ukraine has agreed terms with the United States on a crucial minerals deal, a Ukrainian government source has told Sky News.
There has been no confirmation from the US side yet but Donald Trump said on Monday evening that his Ukrainian counterpart “would like to sign the minerals deal with me”.
The accord, once signed, could unlock a new long-term partnership between Kyiv and Mr Trump‘s White House after weeks of increasingly tense exchanges.
The source said there was a plan for the document to be signed “very soon”.
This could even be during a face-to-face meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Mr Trump.
The US president told reporters on Tuesday evening that his Ukrainian counterpart is “coming to visit on Friday”.
He added: “We have pretty much negotiated our deal on rare earths.”
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A Ukrainian government source has also said Mr Zelenskyy will meet with Mr Trump in Washington on Friday and that the meeting was proposed by the American side.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials have said Kyiv has agreed a framework for an economic deal with the US which will see them trade rights to rare minerals in exchange for continued aid.
The deal sets out the terms to create a new fund to invest in Ukraine’s minerals, rare earth materials and other valuable natural resources.
It no longer contains an initial demand by the United States for a right to $500bn (£394bn) in potential revenue from the resources.
Mr Zelenskyy had previously described such a high price as not being a “serious” conversation.
Mr Trump, however, views the minerals transaction with Ukraine as a fair way to recoup the billions of dollars that the US has given Kyiv – via weapons and financial support – to assist the armed forces in their fight against Russia’s full-scale invasion over the past three years.
The document also does not provide a commitment from Washington to give security guarantees to Ukraine in the wake of any ceasefire deal with Vladimir Putin – something that Kyiv desperately needs and has been asking for.
More granular details about the new partnership are expected to be fleshed out in coming discussions.
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The two sides have “agreed on a framework agreement on how to create a fund that will be filled with a share of minerals” and other natural resources, the government source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“This is a political step to ensure that resource revenues are used for the security and reconstruction of Ukraine.”
The fund would comprise US money that would be invested in Ukrainian natural resources, with profits shared between Washington and Kyiv, it is understood.
The Financial Times first reported on the agreement being reached. It said the final version of the deal was dated 24 February.
“The minerals agreement is only part of the picture. We have heard multiple times from the US administration that it’s part of a bigger picture,” Olha Stefanishyna, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister and justice minister who has led the negotiations, told the newspaper on Tuesday.
