Kathrine Frich
After months of drama and negotiations, the US and Ukraine have signed an “Economic Partnership Agreement”.
After months of drama and negotiations, the US and Ukraine have signed an “Economic Partnership Agreement”.
It’s been a long time coming, but on april 30th, the minerals deal between the U.S. and Ukraine has finally been signed by U.S. Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, and the vice prime minister of Ukraine, Yulia Svydrydenko.
Rebuilding Ukraine
The deal is described as an “economic partnership agreement”, and it will the U.S. access to rare earth minerals found in the Ukrainian underground. As part of the partnership agreement, the U.S. and Ukraine will establish an investment fund meant to rebuild Ukraine after the war.
The valuable Ukrainian underground
The Reconstruction Investment Fund, as it’s called, is aimed at attracting foreign investors to Ukraine in the pursuit of rare and essential minerals – and there’s lots of minerals to get.
The infamous meeting in The White House
The minerals deal has been a long time coming and was first expected to be signed on February 28th when Ukrainian PM, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, attended a press conference in the Oval Office with preisdent Donald Trump, vice president J.D. Vance, secreatary of state, Marco Rubio and others.
Tensions building
The build up to the press conference had been filled with tensions between Trump and Zelenskyy, and the press conference ended in a heated argument where Trump, Vance and others critized Zelenskyy.
“Dictator”
About a week before the meeting, Trump had called Zelenskyy a “dictator” – a statement, the president later retracted.
5 percent of World’s rare minerals
According to NATO Energy Security Centre of Excellence, the importance of Ukraine’s critical materials cannot be overstated. The diverse geological landscape of Ukraine holds approx. 5 percent of the world’s total Rare Earth Minerals.
Used for cars and aerospace
Including metals such as lithium and graphite, used in batteries for electric vehicles as well as titanium, used in both the car and space industry.
Getting ahead of China
Getting access to these materials can help POTUS Donald Trump in the geopolitical rivalry against China, as the minerals are needed to produce things nationally.
Under Russian Control?
Parts of the Ukrainian mineral deposits, however, are found in aeras that er currently under Russian control. Scott Bessent said in a press release, that “no state or person who financed or supplied the Russian war machine will be allowed to benefit from the reconstruction of Ukraine.”
A “significant win” for Ukraine
The Minerals Deal is described as an “significant win” for Ukraine, even though the agreement does not include and safety guarantees. But as Donald trump has said repeatedly, American interests in the war-torn country is a safety guarantee in itself.
“I didn’t want to look folish”
According to CNN, Trumps first public comments on the minerals deal was: “We made a deal today (april 30th) where we get, you know, much more in theory, than the $350 billion but I wanted to be protected. I didn’t want to be out there and look foolish.”
Not entirely true …
The $350 billion is the amount of money, the president claims the US has spent on aid to Ukraine, compared to a much smaller sum from Europe. Both of these numbers have been fact checked by numerous sources, and neither of the presidents figures have been found true.