Ukraine is willing to finalize an agreement granting the US access to its valuable rare minerals to maintain American support in its conflict with Russia, according to senior Ukrainian officials.
For Ukraine, the agreement is seen as key to ensuring its access to future US military aid.
UN says Ukrainian civilian casualties are on the rise
Meanwhile, Ukrainian civilians have been killed or wounded in attacks every day this year, according to a UN report presented Tuesday in New York.
Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukraine’s economy minister and deputy prime minister, traveled to Washington to assist in the agreement’s completion. This information was shared by two anonymous senior Ukrainian officials who were unauthorized to disclose such details publicly.
Also, between April 1-24, civilian casualties in Ukraine were up 46 per cent from the same weeks in 2024, it said.
The UN Human Rights Office reported an alarming 2,641 civilian casualties in Ukraine during the first quarter of this year, revealing an increase of nearly 900 compared to the same period last year.
Also Wednesday, the Ukrainian Security Service claimed its drones struck the Murom Instrument Engineering Plant in Russia’s Vladimir region overnight, causing five explosions and a fire at the military facility. The claim could not be independently verified.
