Ukraine has rejected a proposed US plan that would require it to contribute half of its mineral revenues to a $500 billion fund aimed at reimbursing Washington for its aid, Bloomberg reported. Senior Ukrainian officials insist that the actual value of US assistance is closer to $90 billion and argue that the deal includes elements they find unacceptable, reads an RT report.
Speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Saturday, former US President Donald Trump claimed the agreement was “pretty close” to being finalized. “We’re going to get our money back,” he declared, adding that Washington was asking for “rare earth and oil – anything we can get.”
Since February 2022, the US Congress has appropriated $183 billion for Ukraine, including over $66 billion in military assistance, according to the Pentagon and Ukraine Oversight. However, Ukrainian negotiators are pushing for more time to finalize the terms of the agreement. An unnamed official told Bloomberg that President Vladimir Zelensky does not want to sign the current draft due to what they described as “questionable elements.”
Ukrainian officials discussed the revised minerals accord with US special envoy Keith Kellogg in Kiev on Wednesday. A senior Ukrainian official told Bloomberg that the lack of guarantees for future military and financial aid remains a key obstacle. The Associated Press quoted another official who described the deal’s conditions as “colonial.”
The negotiations have been further complicated by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s unsuccessful attempt to secure an agreement in Kiev last week. Trump has expressed frustration over how Bessent was received by Ukrainian officials, accusing them of derailing the talks. He warned that unless the deal is revived, “things are not going to make [Zelensky] too happy.”
On Friday, the US presented a revised proposal obtained by The New York Times, which reportedly maintained strict financial terms while offering no security guarantees for Ukraine. Ukrainian officials have since submitted amendments to the draft.
The updated US plan still calls for Ukraine to allocate half of its revenues from natural resource extraction—including minerals, gas, oil, and earnings from ports—to a fund in which Washington would hold complete financial control. The arrangement would remain in place until the fund reaches $500 billion.
Clarifying the proposal, Bessent wrote in an op-ed for the Financial Times that “the US would not be taking ownership of physical assets in Ukraine, nor would it be saddling Ukraine with more debt.”
A 2024 World Economic Forum report described Ukraine as a potential major supplier of critical raw materials essential to defense, technology, and green energy. However, Zelensky has acknowledged that much of the country’s mineral-rich territory remains under Russian control.
Bd-pratidin English/ Jisan
