Kyiv and Washington yesterday praised a deal giving the US preferential access to new Ukrainian minerals as a milestone which a top US official said would allow President Donald Trump to negotiate with Russia on a stronger basis.
The Kremlin was silent on Wednesday’s agreement, but former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said it meant Trump had “broken the Kyiv regime” because Ukraine would have to pay for US military aid with mineral resources.
The accord, which was signed in Washington and heavily promoted by Trump, establishes a joint investment fund for Ukraine’s reconstruction as the US president tries to secure a peace settlement in Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The agreement also gives the US preferential access to new Ukrainian minerals projects. It is central to Ukraine’s efforts to mend ties with the White House, which frayed after Trump took office in January, but is yet to be considered by the Ukrainian parliament.
The deal will show the “Russian leadership that there is no daylight between the Ukrainian people and the American people, between our goals,” US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox Business Network in an interview.
“And again, I think this is a strong signal to the Russian leadership, and it gives President Trump the ability to now negotiate with Russia on even a stronger basis,” he said.
His remarks appeared to send a signal to Russia that Washington remains aligned with Kyiv despite question marks over its commitment to its ally since Trump’s return to power upended US diplomacy.
Senior Trump administration officials said three agreements had been signed – a framework deal and two technical accords – and that they expected Ukraine’s parliament to approve them within a week.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he hoped there would be no delays in securing parliament’s approval, although some legislators said they expected it to take longer than a week.
“The agreement has changed significantly in the preparation process,” Zelenskiy said in a video posted on Telegram, hailing what he called a “truly equal agreement” that created opportunities for investment in Ukraine and the modernisation of industry and legal practices in his country.
He and Bessent both underlined the important role in securing a deal that had been played by talks Zelenskiy and Trump held in Rome during Pope Francis’ funeral on April 26.
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