Volodymyr Zelensky claims more security guarantees that would dissuade any future aggression from Russia.
The Ukrainian President said on Saturday that he had asked his ministers not to sign a proposal for an agreement to allow the United States to access minerals of rare land of Ukraine, because the document was Too focused on American interests.
The proposal, which was a key element in discussions between Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US vice-president JD Vance on the sidelines of the Munich security conference on Friday, did not offer specific security guarantees in exchange, according to a Ukrainian senior official .
The decision not to sign agree, at least for the moment, has been described as “myopic” by a senior official in the White House.
“I did not let the ministers sign a relevant agreement because, in my opinion, it is not ready to protect us, to protect our interests”said President Zelensky.
The proposal focused on the way in which the United States could use minerals of rare land of Ukraine “as a compensation” for the support already provided to Ukraine by the Biden administration and As a payment for future assistancesaid high Ukrainian and former Ukrainian officials, under the guise of anonymity in order to be able to express themselves freely.
Ukraine has large reserves of essential minerals used in the aerospace, defense and nuclear sectors. The Trump administration indicated that she wanted to access it to reduce her dependence on China, but Mr. Zelensky said that Any farm should be linked to safety guarantees For Ukraine, which would dissuade any future aggression from Russia.
“For me, it is very important that there is a link between certain security guarantees and certain investments”said the Ukrainian president.
He did not explain in detail why he had asked his officials not to sign the document, who was given to Ukrainian officials on Wednesday by the American secretary to the Treasury, Scott Bassent, during a visit to Kyiv.
“”It is a colonial agreement and Zelensky cannot sign it“”said the former senior official.
The spokesman for the National Security Council of the White House, Brian Hughes, did not explicitly confirm the offer, but said in a statement that “President Zelensky shows myopia in the face of the excellent opportunity that the Trump administration presented to Ukraine “.
The Trump administration has tired of sending additional American aid to Ukraine and Hughes said that mineral agreement would allow American taxpayers to “recover” the money sent to Kyiv, while developing The Ukrainian economy.
Mr. Hughes added that the White House thought that “Close economic links with the United States would be the best guarantee against future attacks and would be an integral part of lasting peace”. He added: “The United States recognizes it, the Russians recognize it and the Ukrainians must recognize it.”
“The basement belongs to the Ukrainians under the Constitution”
During discussions with their Ukrainian counterparts in Munich, American officials showed a commercial spirit and were largely focused on the specificities of mineral exploration and how to form a possible partnership with Ukraine in this At the end, said the senior official.
The potential value of deposits in Ukraine has not yet been discussed, a large part being unexplored or close to the front line.
The American proposal apparently did not take into account the way in which the deposits would be secured in the event of continuation of the Russian attack. The official suggested that the United States did not have “ready -made answers” To this question and that one of the points to remember from Munich discussions will be the way of securing any mining extraction operation in Ukraine involving people and infrastructure.
ADVERTISEMENTAny agreement must comply with Ukrainian law and acceptable to the Ukrainian people, however, recalled the senior Ukrainian official quoted above.
“The basement belongs to the Ukrainians under the Constitution”for its part hammered Kseniiia Orynchak, founder of the National Association of the Minor Industry of Ukraine, which suggests that an agreement would require the support of the population.
