DONALD Trump has struck a deal for Ukrainian rare minerals in return for giving the country $500bn in war funds, he says.
But the US President has echoed Vladimir Putin and warned that Ukraine “may be Russian someday”.
Trump’s tough talk comes before Vice President JD Vance is set to meet Volodymyr Zelensky this week.
The Republican could also announce his peace plan for the conflict which may determine Ukraine’s borders for a generation and finally end the war.
Trump told Fox News that Kyiv could decide it didn’t want to deal – but that Zelensky had agreed to trade military support for key minerals.
He mentioned his intention to have the money returned, specifying the request for an amount equivalent to $500 billion worth of rare earth.
“And they have essentially agreed to do that, so at least we don’t feel stupid.”
Ukraine’s soil is home to a valuable source of rare earth elements that are essential for many kinds of advanced technology.
Trump said he wanted such a deal earlier over Ukraine’s minerals earlier this month after it was initially proposed last fall by Zelensky.
The Ukrainian made overtures towards a deal on Friday saying “If we are talking about a deal, then let’s do a deal, we are only for it.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded by saying the situation in Ukraine “largely corresponds to President Trump’s words.”
“The fact that a significant part of Ukraine wants to become Russia, and has already, is a fact.”
“Any phenomenon can happen with a 50 percent probability – either yes or no.”
Additionally, Trump announced the dispatch of his special envoy Keith Kellogg to Ukraine to develop a proposal aimed at ending the ongoing conflict in the region.
Expressing a desire for a prompt resolution to the conflict, President Trump seeks to navigate the negotiations effectively, while Zelensky emphasizes the necessity of robust security assurances from the United States in any potential agreement with Russia.
Kyiv fears that any settlement that does not include hard military commitments will just allow the Kremlin time to regroup and rearm for a fresh attack.
Zelensky wants guarantees such as Nato membership or the deployment of peacekeeping troops.
The Ukrainian is set to meet with Vance on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on Friday.
On Monday, Zelensky spoke about how Ukraine’s future was being decided now.
He said: “Security of people, security of our state, security of economic relations and, of course, our resource sustainability: not only for Ukraine, but for the entire free world.
“All of this is being decided now.”
Trump is yet to outline publicly what his proposal for peace exactly is.
Trump said he had spoken on the phone to tyrant Putin to discuss bringing an end to the conflict in Ukraine, saying the Russian leader had told him he “wants to see people stop dying”.
Speaking to New York Post, Trump said: “All those dead people.
“Young, young, beautiful people. They’re like your kids, two million of them – and for no reason.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to confirm or deny the call.
Russia says it has annexed five regions of Ukraine – Crimea in 2014 and then Donetsk, Kherson, Lugansk and Zaporizhzhia in 2022 – though it does not have full control over all of them.
Ukraine’s rare eaths
Andrii Yermak, chief of staff to the Zelensky, told AP: “We really have this big potential in the territory which we control.
“We are interested to work, to develop, with our partners, first of all, with the United States.”
Rare earth elements are a set of 17 elements that are essential in many kinds of consumer technology, including cellphones, hard drives and electric and hybrid vehicles.
It is unclear if Trump is seeking specific elements that Ukraine has.
The country also has other in-demand minerals to offer including lithium, titanium, and uranium.
The country’s reserves of titanium, a key component for the aerospace, medical and automotive industries, are believed to be among Europe’s largest.
Ukraine also holds some of Europes largest known reserves of lithium, which is required to produce batteries, ceramics and glass.
China, Trumps chief geopolitical adversary, is the worlds largest producer of rare earth elements.
Both the US and Europe have sought to reduce their dependence on Beijing.
For Ukraine, such a deal would ensure that its biggest and most consequential ally does not freeze military support, which would be devastating for the country that will soon enter its fourth year of war against Russia’s full-scale invasion.
The idea also comes at a time when reliable and uninterrupted access to critical minerals is increasingly hard to come by globally.
Ukraines rare earth elements are largely untapped because of the war, regulation, and information about what exactly is underground.
An estimated 40 per cent of Ukraine’s metallic mineral resources are inaccessible because of Russian occupation, according to data from We Build Ukraine, a Kyiv-based think tank.
Ukraine has argued that it is in Trumps interest to develop the remainder before Russian advances capture more.
The European Commission identified Ukraine as a potential supplier for over 20 critical raw materials and concluded that the countrys accession to the EU could strengthen the European economy.
In 2021, the Ukrainian mineral industry accounted for 6.1% of the countrys gross domestic product and 30% of exports.
