New Mineral Deal: What Does the US Want That Makes Ukraine Worried?

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the new proposal to allow the US access to Ukraine's key minerals differs significantly from the previous draft proposed by Washington, Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported.

Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Mr. Zelenskyy stressed that the proposal that has been officially submitted to his office will be compared with previous plans shared with Deputy Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko during bilateral talks with U.S. officials.

“The framework has changed. Let us study this framework, then we can talk,” he told a news conference in Kiev.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Photo: X/Zelenskyy

Major media outlets around the world, including Bloomberg, Reuters and FT, have revealed new details about the latest version of the deal put forward by the White House, including provisions that would allow the US to gain unprecedented control over Ukraine's resources through a joint investment fund.

According to the draft, the fund's board would consist of five members: three appointed by the United States and two by Ukraine. This would effectively give Washington a veto over major decisions regarding new infrastructure and natural resource projects.

Roads, railways, ports, mines, oil and gas and the exploitation of important minerals are all within the scope of the new structure.

Ukraine will be required to submit all new projects to the fund for consideration “as soon as possible,” Bloomberg reported. If a project is rejected, Ukraine will not be able to offer other parties “significantly better” terms.

In addition, the US will have the right to collect all profits from the fund and an annual return of 4% until the military and financial aid provided to Ukraine is fully recovered. The Kiel Institute for the World Economy estimates that US support has been worth 114 billion euros since the country's conflict with Russia in 2022.

However, the Ukrainian president also said Kiev would not recognize the military aid previously approved by the United States for his country as a loan that needed to be repaid. “We are grateful for the support, but this is not a loan and we will not allow it to be treated as such,” he said.

According to Svitlana Taran, a policy analyst at the European Policy Center (EPC), "The terms agreed in previous versions were balanced in favor of Ukraine. Now, it is unbalanced in favor of the United States."

But Mr Trump has said a mineral deal would help secure a peace deal by giving the United States a financial stake in Ukraine’s future. He also sees it as America’s way of recouping some of the hundreds of billions of dollars it has given Ukraine in financial and military aid over the past three years of fighting.

“This mineral agreement provides Ukraine with the opportunity to form a lasting economic relationship with the United States, which is the foundation for lasting security and peace,” said National Security Council spokesman James Hewitt.

Hoang Hai (according to Interfax, WP, AJ)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/thoa-thuan-khoang-san-moi-my-doi-hoi-them-gi-ma-khien-ukraine-lo-lang-post340563.html