Zelenskyy open to arms deal with Trump in exchange for minerals
Pravda Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine is open to cooperation with Western partners on investments in the extraction of natural resources in exchange for military aid.
Source: European Pravda with reference to Interfax-Ukraine
Details: During a press conference after a meeting with Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), on Tuesday, 4 February, Zelenskyy reminded that one of the points of Ukraine’s Victory Plan presented last year involves investments in natural resources, stating, “We have plenty of them”.
Quote: “You can see that Russia has occupied our lands since 2014, and part of those lands contained significant amounts of our natural resources. We are open to the idea that all of this can be developed with our partners, who are helping us defend our land and push the enemy back with their weapons, their presence, and sanction packages.”
Details: Zelenskyy also mentioned that he had discussed this issue during a meeting with Donald Trump in September 2024.
Background:
- On 3 February, US President Donald Trump revealed his interest in striking an agreement with Ukraine to acquire rare earth metals and other resources in return for arms supplies.
- Trump had not previously ruled out the possibility of purchasing US-made weapons for Ukraine with funds generated by frozen Russian assets.
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