Ukraine may yet get better of Trump on mining deal

This is not a short-term (project) that, by the end of Trump's term, we're going to see minerals coming this way. But again, remember that all minerals policy is long term,

she added

Ultimately, we don’t know what’s underground with much detail in Ukraine. The majority of Ukraine was mapped 30 to 60 years ago by the Soviet Union, and there's not a lot of updated data mapping,

said Baskaran, who is director of the Critical Minerals Security Program at US-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies

We are looking at very unclear, very shadowy dealings, and there are many questions about this deal particularly in the state of war,

said Petrov

We understand that Trump, who started the trade war with China, is now facing the interruption of supplies of rare earth metals from China,

he added

Potentially, (gaining an upper hand on Beijing) is what the US administration is trying to do – play the Ukrainian natural resources against what China may have offered to the US economy,

said Leonid Petrov, senior lecturer and dean of business and management at the International College of Management, Sydney

What we have now essentially is an agreement without actually understanding what is economically viable to mine. Just because you have a resource doesn't make it competitive to mine,

she told CNA’s Asia First programme

Russian forces continued offensive operations in the Pokrovsk direction on February 25 but did not advance."

The Institute for the Study of War said on Tuesday

Olha Stefanishynadeputy Prime Minister

The minerals agreement is only part of the picture. We have heard multiple times from the US administration that it’s part of a bigger picture

Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanyshina told the FT

Without the United States and its money and its military equipment, this war would have been over in a very short period of time

Trump said on Tuesday

There is a position on this matter that was expressed by the Russian foreign minister Lavrov. I have nothing to add to this and nothing to comment on. I leave this without comment,

he said

I think the difficulty is with the Russians, because Russians are the ones who want to weaken US power, and who want to weaken the US in the world overall,

So, when it comes to seeking peace ... she said

It could be whatever, but it’s rare earths and other things,

he was quoted by AP

It could be a trillion-dollar deal. It could be whatever."

Trump did say

What appears to be missing are any security guarantees. This is all financial,

Fisher said

$350bn, military equipment and the right to fight on.”

Asked what Ukraine would receive in the deal, Trump said

I hear that he’s coming on Friday,

Trump told reporters in the Oval Office

We’ve pretty much negotiated our deal on earth and various other things,

Trump added

You are not alone. Norway and other countries, all the countries who are here, but also other countries, will continue to support you as you fight for your territorial integrity, your sovereignty and your human dignity,

Norway’s Deputy Foreign Minister Andreas Motzfeldt Kravik told a packed room of ministers and diplomats

Volodymyr Zelenskyypresident

I am not signing something that 10 generations of Ukrainians will have to repay,

Mr Zelenskiy said of the initial proposal

Olha Stefanishynadeputy Prime Minister

Ukrainian and US teams are in the final stages of negotiations regarding the minerals agreement,

Olha Stefanishyna, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration, said on Monday