President Donald Trump will host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House on Friday for their first meeting since the United States began direct negotiations with Russia to secure an agreement that would end the yearslong war in Ukraine.
Zelenskyy's visit is expected to focus in large part on a potential U.S.-Ukraine deal on the European country's rare-earth minerals, which are used to make a variety of tech products.
Trump previewed the visit during a gathering of his Cabinet members Wednesday, signaling the two countries had made progress on an agreement that would grant the United States a significant ownership stake in Ukraine’s rare-earth minerals as a form of repayment for Washington’s continued support of Kyiv since Russia invaded in February 2022.
“We’re going to be signing an agreement, which will be a very big agreement,” Trump said.
Zelenskyy last met with Trump in December, alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, ahead of an event celebrating the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.
Months earlier, the two met in New York. The Ukrainian Embassy in Washington said that was where Zelenskyy first presented Trump a "Victory Plan" that included the exchange of the country's "natural resources and critical metals."
U.S. officials initiated peace talks with Russian negotiators this month in Saudi Arabia, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio leading the U.S. delegation. It was the first time Russian and American officials had met in person during the Trump administration with the express intent of bringing an end to the war in Ukraine.
Trump has long accused Zelenskyy of taking undue advantage of the United States and goading former President Joe Biden into spending billions of U.S. dollars on a war that “couldn’t be won.”
The mineral agreement, Trump argues, would serve as reimbursement for the nearly $66 billion in military assistance the United States has provided Ukraine over the past three years, and it could create an “economic partnership” between the two countries.
“The minerals agreement will provide the basis for a more sustainable future relationship between the United States and Ukraine and thus stimulate the long-term prosperity that will help the Ukrainians rebuild their country,” Trump said Wednesday.
Ukraine has some of the world’s largest reserves of titanium and iron ore. Many of the minerals, however, are in areas controlled by Russian troops, according to U.S. officials.
Russia has proposed a similar deal that would give the United States ownership of rare-earth minerals and valuable metals in Russian-controlled Ukrainian territory, an idea that both Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have signaled interest in.
Zelenskyy this month rebuffed the initial U.S. offer on rare-earth minerals, saying it did not include strong enough security guarantees for Ukraine.
The rejection, paired with Zelenskyy's insistence that Ukrainian officials be involved in U.S.-Russia talks to end the war, drew Trump’s fury.
After Zelenskyy accused Trump of living in a Russian “disinformation bubble,” Trump maligned him as a “dictator without elections,” arguing without evidence that Zelenskyy decided to postpone elections as Ukraine battles Russia because of low popularity numbers.
Trump later told Fox News that Zelenskyy would hamstring his efforts to negotiate an end to the war.
“I don’t think he’s very important to be at meetings, to be honest with you. He’s been there for three years. He makes it very hard to make deals,” Trump said.
He struck a more conciliatory tone Thursday at a joint news conference with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
“We’re going to get along really well,” Trump said of Zelenskyy. “I have a lot of respect for him. We’ve given him a lot of equipment and a lot of money, but they have fought very bravely, no matter how you figure.”
Both Starmer and Macron, who was at the White House on Monday, reaffirmed their support for Zelenskyy during their meetings with Trump.
Starmer praised Trump on Thursday for creating a “tremendous opportunity to reach a historic peace deal” but cautioned him against negotiating an agreement that favors Russia.
“It can’t be peace that rewards the aggressor,” Starmer said. “We agree history must be on the side of the peacemaker, not the invader.”
Macron said at a joint news conference with Trump that any peace agreement must include strong security guarantees for Ukraine.
“Peace must not mean a surrender of Ukraine. It must not mean a ceasefire without guarantees. This peace must allow for Ukrainian sovereignty and allow Ukraine to negotiate with other stakeholders regarding the issues it affects,” Macron said.
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