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Donald Trump suggested that Volodymyr Zelenskyy could visit the United States as early as Friday to sign the minerals agreement.
According to Ukrinform, citing The New York Times, Trump made this statement to journalists in the Oval Office.
“I hear that he’s (Zelenskyy – ed.) coming on Friday. Certainly, it’s OK with me if he’d like to. And he would like to sign it together with me. And I understand that’s a big deal, very big deal,” the U.S. President said.
Earlier, several media outlets reported that Kyiv and Washington reached an agreement after the U.S. had removed its demand to receive all revenues from rare earth mineral extraction in Ukraine, which is estimated at $500 billion.
As Ukrinform reported, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration and Minister of Justice Olha Stefanishyna stated that Ukrainian and American teams are in the final stage of constructive negotiations on the minerals agreement. According to her, almost all key details have been agreed upon.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has emphasized that the minerals agreement must include clear security guarantees from the U.S. He stated that Ukraine is ready to be an equal partner, not a debtor.
Trump also said that in Ukraine it will be necessary to agree on a format for a peacekeeping mission that would be acceptable to each side.
He had previously stated that Putin would not oppose European peacekeepers in Ukraine as part of a potential ceasefire. The journalist, however, noted that the Kremlin had stated that a mission format that would include military personnel from European countries was unacceptable.
“That’s not what I was told,” the US president replied.
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