Donald Trump has issued a stark warning to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy if Ukraine pulls out of a rare earth minerals deal with the US.
Trump promises ‘big, big problems’ if Zelenskyy backs out of minerals deal. Credit: Chip Somodevilla / Getty
On Sunday (March 29), the 78-year-old president accused Zelenskyy, 47, of trying to renege on the agreement, which would grant the United States access to Ukraine’s valuable oil, gas, and mineral resources through a joint investment fund, with both countries set to share revenue from the projects.
“I think Zelenskyy, by the way, he’s trying to back out of the rare earth deal, and if he does that, he’s got some problems – big, big problems,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, per Politico.
“We made a deal on rare earths, and now he’s saying, ‘well, you know, I want to renegotiate the deal,’” he continued. “He wants to be a member of NATO. Well, he was never going to be a member of NATO. He understands that, so, if he’s looking to renegotiate the deal, he’s got big problems.”
The Ukrainian leader said during a press conference in Kyiv on Friday (March 27) that his country wouldn’t accept any agreement that could put its European Union membership at risk. “Nothing that could endanger … Ukraine’s accession to the EU can be accepted,” he remarked.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha echoed that sentiment, saying: “We can see this Russian strategy and will never accept anything that leaves Ukraine weak or defenseless.
“To the contrary, a real and fair peace requires strong and long-term security guarantees to preserve it,” Sybiha added.
Zelenskyy said his country wouldn’t accept any agreement that could put its European Union membership at risk. Credit: NurPhoto / Getty
According to Ukrainian media, Zelenskyy has raised concerns over “many new provisions that were not previously discussed,” as well as “some aspects that had already been rejected by both sides”.
Kyiv reportedly plans to push for additional US investment and more clarity on how the joint reconstruction fund will function, Bloomberg reported.
Meanwhile, Russian state media have reported that Moscow and Washington have quietly begun discussions about their own rare earth minerals partnership.
“Rare earth metals are an important area for cooperation, and we have certainly started discussions about various rare earth metals and projects in Russia,” Kirill Dmitriev, Putin’s envoy on international economic and investment cooperation, told Izvestia.
The US-Ukraine minerals deal was initially scheduled for signing on February 28 but collapsed after a public spat in the White House, during which Vice President JD Vance accused Zelenskyy of being ungrateful.
It all started when Vance, 40, accused Zelenskyy of disrespecting the US and insisted that he should “thank” America for its efforts to resolve the war. “I think it’s disrespectful for you to come to the Oval Office and try to litigate this in front of the American media,” he bluntly stated.
The Ukrainian president hit back by asking if the VP had even visited Ukraine during the war before remarking that the US “will feel it in the future” with regard to the impact of war.
The response seemed to rattle Trump, who raised his voice at Zelenskyy and criticized his handling of the war.
“Don’t tell us what we’re gonna feel… We’re trying to solve a problem. Don’t tell us what we’re gonna feel,” he said. “You have to be thankful. You don’t have the cards. You’re buried there. Your people are dying. You’re running low on soldiers.
“I’ve empowered you to be a tough guy, and I don’t think you’d be a tough guy without the United States,” he said, adding that the Ukrainian leader was “gambling with millions of lives” and “World War III”.
