U.S. proposal to access Ukrainian rare earth minerals criticized as “colonial agreement”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he directed his ministers not to sign off on a proposed agreement to give the United States access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals because the document was too focused on U.S. interests, the Associated Press reported on Sunday.
The proposal, which was a key part of Zelenskyy’s talks with U.S. Vice President JD Vance on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on Friday, did not offer any specific security guarantees in return, according to one current and one former senior Ukrainian official familiar with the talks.
“I didn’t let the ministers sign a relevant agreement because, in my view, it is not ready to protect us, our interests,” Zelenskyy said.
The proposal focused on how the U.S. could use Kyiv’s rare earth minerals “as compensation” for support already given to Ukraine by the Biden administration and as payment for future aid, the Ukrainian officials said, speaking anonymously so they could speak freely.
The former senior official called the U.S. proposal “a colonial agreement,” adding that Zelenskyy cannot sign it.
Ukraine has vast reserves of critical minerals that are used in the aerospace, defense, and nuclear industries. The Trump administration has indicated it is interested in accessing them to reduce dependence on China, but Zelenskyy said any exploitation would need to be tied to security guarantees for Ukraine amid ongoing conflict with Russia.
“For me is very important the connection between some kind of security guarantees and some kind of investment,” the Ukrainian president said.
Meanwhile, White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes did not explicitly confirm the offer, but said in a statement that “President Zelenskyy is being short-sighted about the excellent opportunity the Trump administration has presented to Ukraine.”
The Trump administration has grown weary of sending additional U.S. aid to Ukraine and Hughes said a minerals deal would allow American taxpayers to “recoup” money sent to Kyiv, while growing Ukraine’s economy.
Any deal must be in accordance with Ukrainian law and acceptable to the Ukrainian people, the senior Ukrainian official added.
“Subsoil belongs to Ukrainians under the Constitution,” Kseniiia Orynchak, founder of the National Association of Mining Industry of Ukraine, previously told the AP, suggesting a deal would need popular support.
