Trump hails minerals agreement ‘an incredible deal’ for Ukraine

Yes, it's a counter to China, but you've still got the problem of where the minerals are going to be processed and how long it's going to take,

said Julian Kettle, Vice Chair Metals and Mining at natural resources consultancy Wood Mackenzie

The reality is that most lithium deposits in Ukraine were identified in the Soviet era and we haven't had any real updates or exploration for many years,

said Federico Gay, analyst at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence (BMI), a London-based specialist information provider for the supply chain of lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles

Ukraine hasn't been mapped in 30 years. There's so much more to be done before we get to a phase of advanced exploration in Ukraine,

said Gracelin Baskaran, director of the critical minerals security program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, an American think tank

Before the war broke out, I had a lot of commercial negotiations with ... investors who were interested in the project,

Alyoshin told Reuters

Even if everything stacks up, it would take a minimum of eight years for the Polokhivske deposit to be developed to the stage where it is producing usable lithium,

he said

We are a backstop because we'll be over there, we'll be working in the country. That's a great thing economically for them,

he said in the Oval Office

About 5% of all the world's 'critical raw materials' are located in Ukraine, which occupies only 0.4 per cent of the Earth's surface,

Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources Svetlana Grinchuk said back in 2022

I think there will be some alignment to this figure that Trump mentioned,

Shapoval told CNBC via video call earlier this month

Other estimates are still confidential,

she continued

While government-to-government agreements can be a helpful market signal to the private sector and spur investments that may otherwise not occur, challenges with the lack of reliable reserve data to confirm economic viability, the loss of key infrastructure [during the war], and the ongoing security risks in the region jeopardize the viability of long-term minerals investments."

CSIS said

Even in the long-term, the success of the bilateral agreement ultimately hinges on the ability of Ukraine to attract private investment in its mineral resources. The U.S. government cannot command private companies to mine in Ukraine as China and Russia can with their state-owned enterprises."

CSIS summed up these concerns bluntly

This poses a risk for mining companies that may end up disappointed after investing millions of dollars in less-than-inspiring deposits,

the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) noted in an article Thursday

Volodymyr Zelenskyypresident

I wanted to have a sentence on security guarantees for Ukraine, and it's important that it's there,

Zelensky told the BBC this week

Stéphane Séjournéeuropean Commission industry chief

Twenty-one of the 30 critical materials Europe needs can be provided by Ukraine in a win-win partnership,

Séjourné said, as quoted by AFP

Volodymyr Zelenskyypresident

The security guarantees from Trump is something that we really need. I would like to talk with him."

Referring to the need for security guarantees before any pen is put to paper, Zelensky said

We simply do not actually have a great idea of what minerals are available in what quantities in Ukraine aside from vague ideas that there is a lot, and roughly in what regions they are kept. That alone is a risky proposition for mining companies, especially with mines being a generational venture, and that is before you introduce political risk."

Wesley A. Hill of the International Tax and Investment Center told Newsweek

Ukraine, aside from obvious political obstacles, has a large problem with inventorying,

said Wesley A. Hill, who manages the Energy, Growth, and Security Program at the International Tax and Investment Center

The added value Europe offers is that we will never demand a deal that's not mutually beneficial,

he added, a remark which appears to take aim at Trump's refusal to offer Kyiv security guarantees

$350 billion and lots of equipment, military equipment, and the right to fight on,

When asked on Tuesday what Ukraine would gain in return for granting the U.S. partial ownership of its resources, Trump responded

Beneath the surface, however, this may be a calculated move to justify withdrawing support altogether—framing Ukraine as unwilling to meet Trump administration conditions,

he added