It's been more than six weeks since the White House scandal that broke out over the signing of a deal on the US exploitation of Ukraine's mineral resources. Despite the embarrassment the Ukrainian president has had to endure from Donald Trump and his associates, both sides acknowledge that "there is still interest" in reaching an agreement. But the views seem to be growing increasingly distant.
The main source of information, including for the American media, are Ukrainian officials who are clearly familiar with the new American demands. And there is real resentment towards what Trump and his people are now demanding. Because this is no longer just a framework agreement like the one that was supposed to be signed in the White House, but rather very specific measures, based on which the US would not only gain rights to Ukraine's mineral resources, but also allow American companies to gain control over their exploitation.
As reported by Reuters, the Americans are now also seeking oversight of the gas pipeline through which gas flowed from Russia to Europe until the end of last year, and which should be placed under the management of the US state corporation IDFC (International Development Finance Corporation).
All money to Washington first
Ukrainian MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak from the opposition party Holos is also apparently familiar with the content of the request, and expressed his disagreement on his Telegram channel. After all, this Washington-owned corporation should be responsible for all mineral resources in his country, with three Americans sitting on the five-member Board of Directors. Also “unfavorable for us,” writes Zheleznyak, is that all amounts should be converted into US dollars, and this should be stored outside of Ukraine.
The New York Times also reports that all the proceeds of this fund for the exploitation of Ukraine's resources should first go to the United States until the entire amount that Ukraine received in American military aid is returned. Only then would Kiev have some of its own treasure. And even that is not enough for Trump: if the expected profits are not realized, then Ukraine will have to pay for it from other sources.
Ukrainian oppositionist Zheleznyak, as well as many other informed sources in Ukraine, claim that such a proposed agreement is not only extremely unfavorable, but also meaningless for Ukraine. The influential Internet portal "European Justice" writes in its commentary that in his latest proposal, Trump "has crossed almost all the boundaries that were previously agreed upon." There are also comments that the US clearly wants to turn Ukraine into its economic colony.
Incompatible with EU membership
Officially, the government in Kiev has neither confirmed nor denied the published details of the latest American proposal. However, Ukrainian President Zelensky has made it clear that he will not be able to accept all of these American demands. First of all, it is about collecting American military aid from previous years, when it came without any conditions.
In addition, Zelensky warns that such an agreement with the US could run counter to the rules of the European Union, which Ukraine aspires to join. Namely, this concerns Washington's demand that it should have the right to veto all future investments when it comes to the exploitation of Ukraine's mineral resources.
According to the Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform, whose reporters Zelensky spoke to unofficially, the Ukrainian president believes that US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant is primarily to blame for this tightening of conditions. During his visit to Kiev, the Ukrainian president got the impression that the US minister wanted to dictate Washington's conditions.
Will there still be negotiations?
"I defend what belongs to Ukraine," Zelensky told the news agency. He believes that any agreement must be beneficial for both sides. The Ukrainian president also says that there has been "no further talk" of any US military guarantees for the security of his homeland.
However, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Olga Stefanishina claims that Ukraine has not yet abandoned the mineral resources agreement with the US and that it sent its proposal last week. She did not want to discuss the details, but only said that “the fact that it is being discussed again is a good sign.” She assumes that negotiations will continue for some time, “until we reach an agreement.”
But Reuters' Ukrainian sources are much less optimistic. They report that the mood in the negotiations between the US and Ukrainian sides has so far been "extremely antagonistic."
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