Ukraine allies have been interested in their mineral riches; Trump could demand them in exchange for military aid

CNN
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The president of the United States, Donald Trump, has declared that he wants to access the mineral deposits of Ukraine in exchange for the future military aid that Kyiv needs to continue defending himself from the Russian aggression.

While the comment highlighted Trump’s transactional approach to war in Ukraine, it was not entirely unexpected. The United States and other Western countries have been looking at the mineral riches of Ukraine for a long time.

“We are investing hundreds of billions of dollars. They have great rare earths. And I want the safety of rare earths, and they are willing to do so, ”Trump told journalists in the Oval Office on Monday, without specifying what Ukraine had committed, if he had committed to something.

He had previously suggested that any future help should be provided in loan and would be conditioned to Ukraine negotiating with Russia.

Under the former US president Joe Biden, the United States provided Ukraine US $ 65.9 billion in military assistance since Russia launched its large -scale invasion of the country in February 2022.

Biden argued that the aid was necessary because Ukraine’s victory was key to the United States’s own security. Trump, however, has made it clear that he does not believe that the United States must continue to provide assistance without obtaining something in return.

Although Trump did not give details about what he wants from Kyiv, an agreement that outlines a deeper cooperation between the United States and Ukraine in terms of minerals had been brewing for months before he assumed the position in January.

A memorandum of understanding prepared under the Biden administration last year said that the United States would promote investment opportunities in Ukraine mining projects for US companies in exchange for KyIV created economic incentives and implement good commercial and environmental practices.

Ukraine already has a similar agreement with the European Union, signed in 2021.

Adam Mycyk, partner of the Kyiv office of the Global Dentons law firm, said that, although the objective of the agreement (ensuring the supply of critical minerals of Ukraine) has not changed, the Trump approach seems to be more transactional.

“It remains to be seen what way could such an agreement adopt, but Ukraine would be interested ”, Mycyk told CNN.

Kyiv has not yet responded to Trump’s comments, but the Ukrainian government has argued in the past that its mineral deposits are one of the reasons why the West should support Ukraine: to prevent these strategically important resources from falling into Russian hands.

The president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, has specifically mentioned the possibility of future investments in the country’s natural resources by its western allies as a key part of its “victory plan”.

“The critical resource deposits in Ukraine, together with the potential of world -important energy and food production of Ukraine, are among the key predators of the Russian Federation in this war. And this is our growth opportunity, ”said Zelensky in a statement in which he outlined the plan in October.

Nataliya Katser-Buchkovska, co-founder of the Ukraine Sustainable Investment Fund, said an agreement that brought US investment to the Mining Sector of Ukraine would be beneficial for both parties.

The United States depends largely on imports for the minerals it needs, many of which come from China. On the 50 minerals classified as critics, the United States depended totally on imports of 12 and more than 50 % of imports of another 16, according to the United States Geological Service, a government agency.

Ukraine, meanwhile, has deposits of 22 of these 50 critical materials, according to the Ukrainian government.

“It is not only a crucial step for the economic recovery of Ukraine after the war, but it is also an opportunity for the United States to address the problems of the global supply chain,” said Katser-Buchkovska, who served as a member of Parliament Ukrainian from 2014 to 2019 and was the head of a parliamentary commission on energy safety and transition.

Although Trump used the term “rare earths”, it is not clear if he intended to refer specifically to rare earth minerals, a group of 17 elements that exist in the Earth’s core and have magnetic and conductive properties that make them crucial for production of electronic products, clean energy technologies and some weapons systems.

Ukraine does not have reserves of rare land minerals of world importance, but it does have some of the largest deposits of graphite, lithium, titanium, beryllium and uranium of the world, all of them classified by the United States as critical minerals. Some of these reserves are in areas that are currently under Russian occupation.

China has long dominated the world production of rare earth minerals and other materials of strategic importance. According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), it is responsible for almost 90 % of the world processing of rare earth minerals. In addition, China is also the world’s largest producer of graphite and titanium, and one of the main lithium processors.

The most recent commercial disagreement between Washington and Beijing makes it even more important for the United States to seek alternative suppliers.

The economic measures that China announced on Tuesday in retaliation for the new Trump tariffs include new export controls of more than two dozen metal products and related technologies. Although they do not cover the most critical materials that the United States needs, the measure indicates that China is willing to use its mineral wealth as lever in commercial disputes.

Mycyk said that the demand for these critical materials is expected to increase due to the global transition to electric vehicles and renewable energy technologies.

“Ukraine deposits are, therefore, important worldwide, since they offer diversification against dominant producers such as China. Maintaining these resources under Ukrainian control is crucial to preserve their economic sovereignty, ”he added.

– Kevin Liptak of CNN contributed to this report.