Russia offers the US economic cooperation in exchange for concessions on Ukraine - ISW
Kyiv • UNN
The Kremlin is trying to interest the US in economic cooperation in order to obtain favorable concessions in ending the war in Ukraine. Russia is proposing the development of rare earth mineral deposits.
Kremlin officials continue to promote the possibility of future economic cooperation with the United States, likely to demand pre-emptive concessions from Washington in a ceasefire or peace talks. This is stated in the report of the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), reports UNN.
Details
It is noted that on March 20, the Kremlin news agency TASS reported on receiving a copy of a letter in which the chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Economic Policy of the Russian Federation, Andriy Kutepov, proposed to the First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, Denis Manturov, to create a fund for rare earth metals for cooperation with foreign investors.
The letter states that Russian officials will control the fund and will not allow foreign investors to own shares directly in foreign projects, but will still compensate them
They point out that this letter is dated December 2024, when a meeting was held on the licensing of subsoil resources of the Russian Federation.
TASS's decision to talk about this letter only now, against the background of the current US-Ukrainian negotiations on a mineral agreement, indicates that the Russian state media likely withheld this letter in order to offer the United States a more attractive deal and disrupt the US-Ukrainian agreement
Analysts recall that high-ranking Russian officials, including Putin, have recently emphasized economic incentives for the United States, likely in exchange for concessions favorable to Russia. And during a conversation with Putin on March 18, US President Donald Trump noted that the US and Russia could conclude "huge economic deals" after there is peace in Ukraine.
Recall
On the eve, Trump said that he would sign an agreement with Ukraine on rare earth minerals "very soon." He also expressed optimism about ending the war, mentioning talks with Putin and Zelensky.
Earlier, the general director of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, Kirill Dmitriev, stated that the Russian Federation is considering the development of rare earth element deposits in the country and wants to cooperate with American companies.
