The United States and Ukraine on April 30 signed a partnership agreement covering Ukraine’s rare earth metals and other natural resources, according to both U.S. and Ukrainian officials.
“And to be clear, no state or person who financed or supplied the Russian war machine will be allowed to benefit from the reconstruction of Ukraine.”
Ukrainian First Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko confirmed that she signed the agreement for Ukraine on April 30.
U.S. President Donald Trump has been working for months on a deal in which the United States could gain access to Ukraine’s natural resources.
Negotiations for this economic partnership hit an early setback during a Feb. 28 White House meeting in which Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy clashed in front of the gathered media over how best to settle the ongoing Russia–Ukraine war.
U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators have continued to revisit the discussions on Ukraine’s natural resources in the weeks that followed Zelenskyy’s White House visit.
Although Bessent signaled that the Trump administration is ready to finalize an agreement, he indicated that U.S. and Ukrainian representatives may not be on the same page.
“Ukrainians decided, last night, to make some last-minute changes. Well, we’re sure that they will reconsider,” Bessent said.
During a telethon earlier on April 30, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal announced that Svyrydenko had departed for Washington to sign a deal.
The agreement will now be submitted to the Ukrainian Parliament for ratification.
“The US affirms its commitment to long-term peace in Ukraine and acknowledges Ukraine’s contribution to global security—including its decision to give up nuclear weapons,” she said.
According to Svyrydenko, the Ukrainian government will retain full ownership and control of extracting operations and resources, and that includes state-owned companies.
The fund will operate as an equal partnership between the United States and Ukraine, and it does not include provisions regarding any debt obligations to the United States. The United States will work through the International Development Finance Corp. (DFC).
“Importantly, the Agreement sends a signal to global partners that long-term cooperation with Ukraine—over decades—is not only possible but reliable,” she said.
Only new critical mineral, oil, and gas licenses will finance the fund, and the revenues and contributions will not be taxed by either nation. There is also an expectation of technology transfer and development as well as assistance from the United States to attract additional investment and technology.
The fund will be invested in extraction projects as well as related infrastructure and processing, but it must be invested exclusively in Ukraine.
“We expect that for the first 10 years, Fund profits and revenues will not be distributed, but instead reinvested into Ukraine—into new projects or reconstruction,” Svyrydenko said. “These terms will be subject to further discussion.”
A source familiar with the White House’s terms told The Epoch Times that it is not one but three different documents and that the Ukrainian side must sign all of them for the Trump administration to consider the deal complete.
This source said Svyrydenko was advised to not depart for the United States if Kyiv hadn’t finished negotiations and finalized the agreements.
The White House has yet to release the full details of the deal.
Trump has routinely positioned the minerals deal as a way for the United States to recoup some of its costs for supporting Ukraine throughout its ongoing war with Russia.
