Zelensky resists U.S. bid for Ukraine's mineral rights
Volodymyr Zelensky declined to sign a document he received in Munich from representatives of the American Congress, reports journalist Josh Rogin of "The Washington Post." According to him, the document would have granted Americans rights to a significant portion of Ukraine's mineral deposits.
This was expected to occur during the ongoing Munich Security Conference.
"Multiple lawmakers here in Munich told me the US Congressional delegation presented Zelenskyy with a piece of paper they wanted him to sign which would grant the US rights to 50% of Ukraine’s future mineral reserves," Rogin wrote on social media.
He added that "Zelenskyy politely declined to sign it."
Trump wants Ukrainian minerals in exchange for aid
In early February, Donald Trump suggested that he expects Ukraine to secure American access to rare earth metals in exchange for continued military support.
- We’re telling Ukraine they have very valuable rare earths. We’re looking to do a deal with Ukraine where they’re going to secure what we’re giving them with their rare earths and other things, — stated Trump.
It turns out that Kyiv was not surprised by this, as the idea of their joint extraction had been proposed by the Ukrainian side several months ago.
