The president said the president of Ukraine will come to the US on Friday to sign a preliminary agreement that will give the US access to revenue from the country’s natural resources, although the Ukrainian leader warned that the deal is not yet finalized.
“We will sign an agreement, which will be a very important deal,” Trump told reporters on Wednesday during the first office meeting of his second term.
Zelensky confirmed in his daily video speech on Wednesday night that “I will meet President Trump. It is important to me and everyone in the world that US help does not stop. ” However, Zelensky did not go beyond the comments made early on the day, when he said he needed time to study the preliminary text of the agreement and consult European allies.
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He indicated that the draft seemed acceptable because he would not condemn Ukraine to being a “debtor nation” after some of the trump team’s initial requirements were removed.
“This agreement can be a big hit – or go unnoticed,” said Zelensky. “The great success will depend on President Donald Trump.”
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The meeting between the US and Ukrainian presidents is conditioned to Kiev’s recognition that the deal is definitive, according to an White House employee. Zelensky’s public statements have diverged from what his negotiators indicated in private, the official said on an anonymity.
A summit between Trump and Zelensky to close the agreement can appease the US President, who criticized the Ukrainian leader this month, even while Trump advanced with a plan to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in his attempt to consolidate a war-scale ceasefire that began with the large-scale invasion of Ukraine three years ago. Zelensky had made it clear that he wanted a meeting with Trump before a US and Russian meeting.
White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said on Tuesday that a funds agreement was “near the finish line.”
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Safety guarantees
Zelensky’s team had rejected a draft according to the US granted 50% of future resource extraction revenue – including minerals, oil and gas, as well as resource -linked infrastructure – because it did not include safety guarantees.
The current text, seen by Bloomberg, does not yet predict such guarantees, but a “lasting partnership” through economic ties. The US has removed an initial requirement that Kiev pledged to pay $ 500 billion from resource extraction as a compensation for previous American aid, according to a source.
Trump said on Wednesday: “I won’t do security guarantees” because “Europe is the neighbor, but let’s make sure everything goes well.” He stated that it is a “good thing” that the UK and France said they want to “put the so -called peacemakers on the spot.”
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“It’s a great deal for Ukraine too, because they’ll have it there, and we’ll be working there,” Trump said. “We will be in the territory, and you know, this way, it is a kind of automatic security, because no one will mess with our people when we are there.”
Zelensky, who said he would meet with European leaders in London after a possible meeting with Trump, said more negotiations would be necessary to establish the details of a joint fund, as specified in the text, and reinforced his requirement for security guarantees agreement.
“A ceasefire without security guarantees will not work,” said Zelensky. “The only way is to end the war so that it does not start over tomorrow.”
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The deal is at the center of Trump’s diplomatic effort to fulfill his promise to quickly end the conflict. NATO allies were surprised by Trump’s approximations to Moscow and his sudden Kiev removal, including US President discussing with Zelensky while accepting Kremlin’s demand that Ukraine was elected in war times. Performing a vote is prohibited under the martial law of Ukraine.
But Trump’s focus on mineral resources raised questions. Despite reports of mineral deposits valued at US $ 10 trillion, Ukraine does not have large internationally -viable recognized rare land reserves. Most deposits are probably byproduct of material production such as phosphates. Some are in areas occupied by Russia.
The agreement can offer Trump a way to get support from its voters to continue helping Ukraine, especially if Washington needs Congress to take additional help for the country if negotiations with Russia are dragging. Ukraine still depends on US and Europe allies for weapons and ammunition. Trump said on Tuesday that the agreement would give Kiev “the right to keep fighting.”
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