The United States signed a long-anticipated agreement with Ukraine on Wednesday to exploit mineral resources in the European country.
According to a statement released by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the agreement will contribute to Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts following the war.
Former President Donald Trump had repeatedly emphasized the need for such an agreement as a prerequisite for offering future security guarantees to Kyiv amid its struggle against the Russian invasion.
In the official statement, the U.S. government said the agreement "sends a signal to Russia" that the Trump administration is "committed to a peace process centered on a free, sovereign, and prosperous Ukraine." Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko traveled to Washington on Wednesday to sign the agreement.
The initial agreement was expected to be signed in February but was derailed after a heated Oval Office exchange between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, during which the U.S. president accused his counterpart of “flirting with World War III.”
Hours after the agreement was signed, Trump stated that it represented compensation for the funds the U.S. had spent on the war thus far.
“Biden gave them $350 billion,” Trump said during an appearance on Fox News, adding that they had “reached a deal where, theoretically, we get much more than that $350 billion.”
Trump has frequently cited that figure to refer to the aid the U.S. has provided to Ukraine in response to the Russian invasion, although a BBC Verify analysis confirmed the actual amount is significantly lower.
Joint Investment Fund
The newly signed agreement will establish a joint investment fund for mineral exploration and will define how revenues will be split between the two nations.
According to the U.S. Treasury Department, the new U.S.-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund acknowledges the "significant financial and material support" Washington has provided Kyiv since the Russian invasion in February 2022.
“President Trump envisioned this partnership between the American and Ukrainian people to demonstrate both parties’ commitment to lasting peace and prosperity in Ukraine,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in the statement.
“And to be clear, no state or individual who financed or supplied the Russian war machine will benefit from Ukraine’s reconstruction,” he added.
Following the signing, Yulia Svyrydenko posted on X (formerly Twitter) in Ukrainian that the fund will help attract Western investment into Ukrainian mineral, oil, and gas projects.
She affirmed that the resources will remain Ukrainian property and that Kyiv will determine where they are extracted. She also noted that the partnership will be structured as a 50/50 joint venture and emphasized that the agreement does not entail any debt obligations to the U.S., which will help attract investment and technology for Ukraine’s projects.
According to Svyrydenko, in exchange, the United States will provide Ukraine with additional aid, including air defense systems.
She added that the fund’s income and contributions will be tax-exempt in both countries.
The agreement must still be ratified by Ukrainian lawmakers and acknowledges Ukraine’s contributions to global security.
Last-Minute Changes
The agreement’s signing came after delays that, according to U.S. officials, stemmed from Ukraine’s attempts to renegotiate already settled terms.
“We’re ready to sign this afternoon if they are,” Bessent said Wednesday, noting that Ukraine “decided to make last-minute changes” to the agreement.
Later that day, a U.S. source familiar with the talks criticized Ukraine for trying to reopen terms that had seemingly been finalized over the weekend.
Both teams reportedly worked through the night from Friday to Saturday to finalize the documents, and negotiations continued until early Wednesday morning, the source told the BBC.
Points of contention included the fund’s governance, transparency mechanisms, and measures to ensure full traceability of all funds.
“Nothing has been removed,” Bessent said when asked about the changes. “It’s the same agreement we finalized over the weekend. No changes on our part.”
Vatican Meeting
Ukraine is believed to have vast reserves of rare earth minerals such as graphite, titanium, and lithium—materials highly sought after for use in renewable energy, military applications, and industrial infrastructure.
The Trump administration’s push to access Ukraine’s mineral wealth comes amid an escalating trade war with China, which currently supplies 90% of the world’s rare earth reserves.
A previous draft of the agreement appeared to grant the United States broad access to Ukraine’s industries beyond minerals. While it didn’t specify the security support Washington would provide in return, it stated that the agreement was “a tangible demonstration of U.S. support for Ukraine’s security.”
The agreement follows a meeting between Trump and Zelensky at Pope Francis’ funeral in the Vatican and ongoing U.S.-Russia talks regarding a potential ceasefire in Ukraine.
The recent Trump-Zelensky meeting was notably more cordial than their February encounter at the White House, prompting a softer tone from Trump toward Zelensky in subsequent days and increased criticism of Russian attacks.
On Wednesday, Trump declared, “As you know, we are always seeking rare earths. They have a lot, and we reached an agreement, so we can start digging and do what we need to do. It benefits them, too.”
Muted Signing Ceremony
By Tom Bateman, U.S. State Department Correspondent
The signing of this agreement was announced via a press release emailed by the U.S. Treasury Department—a far cry from the initially planned White House ceremony in February, which collapsed after a fiery dispute in the Oval Office between Presidents Trump and Zelensky.
Since then, the deal appears to have been significantly renegotiated under mounting pressure from the White House.
Still, Zelensky secured key concessions from Washington. A draft of the agreement, seen by the BBC, outlines the creation of a joint investment fund to explore mineral and energy resources in Ukraine. The revenues will support Ukraine’s reconstruction.
Crucially, the draft states that future U.S. military assistance to Ukraine will be counted as part of the American investment in the fund—effectively granting the U.S. access to some of Ukraine’s natural resources in exchange for ongoing security aid.
That is significantly less than what Trump originally demanded: full repayment of all U.S. military assistance provided since the war began in 2022.
The Treasury Department’s language shows unusually strong solidarity with Ukraine for the Trump administration, referencing Russia’s “full-scale invasion” and stating that “no state or individual who funded or supplied Russia’s war machine will benefit from Ukraine’s reconstruction.”
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