The US and Ukraine have signed an agreement on critical minerals late last night (30 April), as Kyiv appears to have mended its relations with Washington following a series of diplomatic bust-ups.
Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukrainian prime minister, confirmed the news on her Twitter account, thanking both US president Donald Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy for their leadership.
“This document is capable of delivering success for both our countries — Ukraine and the US.”
In a statement, US treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, said the deal was a recognition of the “significant financial and material support” given by the US to Ukraine since Russia’s illegal invasion.
“The US is committed to helping facilitate the end of this cruel and senseless war. This agreement signals clearly to Russia that the Trump Administration is committed to a peace process centred on a free, sovereign, and prosperous Ukraine over the long term.
“And to be clear, no state or person who financed or supplied the Russian war machine will be allowed to benefit from the reconstruction of Ukraine.”
The deal, called the US-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund, was signed this morning.
Details
The US Treasury Department and International Development Finance Corporation are set to work with the Ukrainian government to finalise the details.
Kyiv estimates that it holds about 5% of critical minerals within Ukrainian territory, including graphite, lithium and titanium.
In a series of messages on social media, Svyrydenko said that Ukraine would retain substantial control over the minerals and manage the fund on a 50/50 basis.
Additionally, all of the companies will remain state-owned and would not impact Ukraine’s possible accession to the EU.
Svyrydenko said the terms of the agreement would mean that Ukraine would contribute 50% of new rent to the deal, with possible room for additional contributions, while the US could provide fresh military equipment or direct financial support.
The fund would then “invest in extraction projects for critical materials, oil and gas, as well as in related infrastructure and processing.”
Reaction – allies and enemies
Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president and a key ally of Vladimir Putin, said that this was evidence that Trump had “finally pressured the Kyiv regime to pay for US aid” and suggested that Ukraine was about to “disappear”, as reported by the state propaganda outlet TASS. Russian military launched fresh attacks on civilians overnight, as news of the agreement filtered out.
Republican senator and key Trump ally, Lindsey Graham, said he had enough support in the senate to maintain sanctions on Russia. Former US Ambassador to Ukraine, William Taylor, told the BBC the deal was a "positive development" for peace.
UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, also welcomed the deal.
A deal imperilled
The agreement looked imperilled at various points.
Trump and his vice president, JD Vance, had attacked Zelenskyy for not saying “thank you” enough in a widely panned White House meeting, while cutting off key US intelligence and material aid to Ukraine. A deal was supposed to be signed during that trip in February, but was withdrawn after the Ukrainian delegation was kicked out of the White House.
However, after a reportedly more friendly conversation at the funeral of Pope Francis and a series of meetings between top level officials, the deal was approved by both sides.
The deal needs to be approved by Ukraine’s parliament and the US senate. Additionally, there is always the chance that the tempestuous Trump could attempt to renegotiate the terms. In his initial social media posts, the president had demanded that Ukraine pay the US back in full for all of the US military assistance provided since the start of Russia’s invasion in 2022.
