Fossil Fuel Agreement with the United States: Where are the Negotiations at and What Will Ukraine Get
Kyiv • UNN
Ukraine and the US may sign an agreement on minerals and reconstruction on February 28 in Washington. The document envisages the creation of a fund to which Ukraine will contribute 50% of the proceeds from the future monetization of state resources.
Barron's reported on February 25 that Ukraine and the United States could sign a deal on minerals and reconstruction as early as this Friday, February 28. The signing may take place in Washington. UNN collected the main information around the agreement.
The FT reports that Kyiv has agreed terms with Washington on a minerals deal that Ukrainian officials hope will improve relations with the Trump administration and pave the way for a long-term US security commitment.
Recent statements by US President Donald Trump on the deal
On February 26, Trump said that he had “heard” about a possible visit by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Washington on February 28. He also said he was “not opposed to such a visit.
Commenting on the Ukraine minerals deal, the US leader said that the two countries “almost have a deal”. He also noted that “we will address” Ukraine's future security “later.
According to CNN, Trump also commented on what Ukraine would gain from the deal.
“350 billion dollars (this may be the so-called “debt” for the assistance provided, but Trump did not specify - ed.) and a lot of equipment, military hardware, and the right to continue fighting,” Trump said.
The BBC wrote that Trump said he had insisted on access to mineral deposits in Ukraine in exchange for the military aid the US provided to the country.
“We want that money back,” Trump said.
The US President said that the deal could be “for trillion dollars.
Initial conditions in the USA
On February 18, The Telegraph reported that the proposed US agreement on access to Ukraine's natural resources provided for Washington's control over mineral and oil and gas resources, ports and other infrastructure.
The document showed that Donald Trump's demands go far beyond US control of Ukraine's most important minerals, covering everything from ports and infrastructure to oil and gas.
The final version of the agreement, dated February 24 and seen by the FT, provides for the creation of a fund to which Ukraine will contribute 50 percent of the proceeds from the “future monetization” of state-owned mineral resources, including oil and gas, and related logistics. The fund will invest in projects in Ukraine.
It excludes mineral resources that are already contributing to the Ukrainian state treasury, meaning that it will not cover the current activities of Naftogaz or Ukrnafta, the largest gas and oil producers in Ukraine.
However, the agreement makes no reference to the U.S. security guaranteesthat Kyiv initially insisted on in exchange for agreeing to the deal. It also leaves important issues such as the size of the US share in the fund and the terms of the “joint ownership” agreements to be settled in subsequent agreements.
Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Olga Stefanishyna, who led the negotiations, told the Financial Times that the deal was “only part of the picture.
On February 24, UNN sources explainedthat this is a framework agreement on a fund for the reconstruction of Ukraine and investments, which can be filled, in particular, with revenues from resources.
Statements of the President of Ukraine on the agreement
On February 23, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the first deal proposed by the United States, which included a 50-50 split, was not in Ukraine's interests and did not contain the necessary security guarantees.
On February 23, Zelenskiy also said that he could be forced to sign an economic agreement with the United States that would ensure continued aid to Ukraine in exchange for the US profiting from the country's mineral resources.
In addition, the President of Ukraine emphasized, when commenting on the minerals agreement, that he would not sign something that would be paid to 10 generations of Ukrainians .
Bloomberg reported on February 25 that the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine is expected to recommend signing an agreement with the United States on joint development of key mineral resources on Wednesday, February 26 .
