US-Ukraine minerals deal could be signed today, says Treasury Secretary

The US and Ukraine have been in talks to end the war with Russia. AFP Photo / Ukrainian Foreign Ministry

• US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington and Kyiv could sign a minerals deal today.
• The deal would give the US access to Ukraine’s mineral and rare earth deposits.
• President Donald Trump wants the agreement as compensation for aid given to Ukraine since 2022.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington and Kyiv could sign a minerals deal today – a key part of an American push to end Ukraine’s war with Russia – if “last-minute” issues are resolved.

“Our side is ready to sign. The Ukrainians decided last night to make some last-minute changes,” Bessent said during a White House Cabinet meeting led by President Donald Trump.

“We’re sure that they will reconsider that, and we are ready to sign this afternoon if they are.”

The Trump administration has worked for several weeks with Kyiv to hash out a final pact that would give the United States access to Ukraine’s mineral and rare earth deposits.

Trump wants the deal as compensation for aid given to Ukraine by his predecessor Joe Biden, since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

“I said well, we want something for our efforts ... And we said, rare earth. They have very good rare earth,” Trump said in response to a reporter’s question about a potential agreement.

The President said the agreement would allow the United States to “start digging and doing what we have to do” in Ukraine.

“It’s also good for them because you’ll have an American presence at the site,” Trump added.

“The American presence will, I think, keep a lot of bad actors out of the country or certainly out of the area where we’re doing the digging.”

- Agence France-Presse