America and Ukraine strike highly anticipated minerals deal

01-05-2025

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America and Ukraine strike highly anticipated minerals deal
Thur 1 May 7am •
American-Ukrainian 'reconstruction investment fund' announced, two months after White House row

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Zelensky discusses similarities between him and Trump

New York Post

17-07-2025

New York Post

Zelensky discusses similarities between him and Trump

KYIV, Ukraine — President Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky may have more in common than meets the eye, the Ukrainian president suggested Wednesday in an exclusive interview with The Post. 'First of all, we are the choice of our people … and we definitely share the same values with our people,' Zelensky said of the similarities between himself and Trump during a sit-down in Kyiv. Those shared American-Ukrainian values include a desire to defend freedom, family and the homeland, the 47-year-old explained. 6 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky suggested the similarities between him and President Trump. Kostiantyn Yaremenko 'I think that every American would defend his or her family with arms. Every single one of them,' Zelensky said, noting that the 'priceless' normality of Ukrainian life, including things as simple as family dinners, has been 'taken away' since Russia's February 2022 invasion. 'I think that these are absolutely clear things. Our most important values, family things — I think the American people perceive it the same way, and that's why the American people support Ukraine,' he continued. 'Despite the distance, there is no difference between these values and approaches to life. There are different identities, different customs, different traits … different countries … but I think they have the same values.' When pressed on specific similarities between himself and Trump, 79, Zelensky initially chuckled. 'With me?' the former entertainer and co-founder of a successful television production company responded, before drawing parallels with the American commander in chief. 6 While being interviewed in Kyiv, Ukraine, Zelensky said, 'we are the choice of our people … and we definitely share the same values with our people.' UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE/AFP via Getty Images 'I'm a very lively person,' Zelensky said. 'I think that you have to be as energetic as possible. You have to keep your energy up. You can never pass, you have to win. I think these are things and signals that President Trump understands. 'I'm that kind of person, and it was absolutely clear [after Russia's invasion] that we're not going anywhere, no one is going to go away, and we're going to take the fight, and we're going to stand to the end,' he declared. 6 The Post's Cailin Doornbos speaks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Kostiantyn Yaremenko The Ukrainian leader, who, like Trump, was a political outsider with no bureaucratic experience before being elected president in the spring of 2019, also signaled that his way of thinking and solving problems mirrored his US counterpart's. 'I don't work in a linear way, and I don't answer in a completely linear way,' Zelensky said, attributing that to his business experience. 'I don't have a lot of bureaucratic experience in business, although I have been president for many years, but, nevertheless, I came from business, where you make decisions very quickly,' he added. 6 Zelensky further elaborated that those similar goals include defending one's freedom, family, and their country's homeland. Kostiantyn Yaremenko 'Sometimes you need to take a hit … It's also very important to always be on your feet. 'I think this business experience … is very clear to President Trump, and it is also very clear to me.' Zelensky cited Ukraine's business-like, rather than bureaucratic, approach to ramping up drone production as something Trump might appreciate. 6 Zelensky discussed American and Ukrainian values with The Post. Kostiantyn Yaremenko 'We had nothing, and Russia hit us with a lot of missiles and artillery,' he said. 'We had to find a different approach.' He touted that under his leadership, Ukraine has 'built a drone industry … outside of all bureaucratic formats.' 'When we started to produce, I opened up a lot of different things to the private sector, and from almost zero private sector involvement in defense, we have reached 70% today,' Zelensky said. 6 During the sit-down, the Ukrainian president acknowledged, 'Our most important values, family things — I think the American people perceive it the same way, and that's why the American people support Ukraine.' UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE/AFP via Getty Images He indicated that his previous life as an entrepreneur in the post-Soviet Union mediaspace in Ukraine taught him 'how to react quickly, on a daily basis.' 'You don't look at bureaucratized processes, that can take months. It's impossible to fight for yourself that way,' he asserted. 'It is definitely impossible to stand and definitely impossible to win. It's just not possible.'

U.S.–Ukraine minerals deal: the main points of the newly signed agreement

Yahoo

01-05-2025

Yahoo

U.S.–Ukraine minerals deal: the main points of the newly signed agreement

The U.S. and Ukraine signed the long-awaited minerals agreement on April 30, paving the way for further American support of Kyiv through a joint investment fund that will contribute to Ukraine's reconstruction. The deal comes after months of sometimes fraught negotiations, including an Oval Office shouting match between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that derailed its signing in February. While the U.S. officials had pushed for a swift agreement, Ukraine insisted on including security guarantees in the deal, and ensuring any agreement wouldn't be considered as repayment for any previous aid. Over the weekend, Ukrainian officials announced that they had managed to secure the removal of any requirement for Kyiv to pay back the U.S. for previous military assistance, but that any future aid would be counted toward the deal. While the current deal doesn't contain any security guarantees, Ukraine's Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko wrote on X to say that 'in addition to direct financial contributions (to the fund), the deal may also provide new assistance — for example, air defense systems for Ukraine.' Following its signing between Svyrydenko and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in Washington, Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers published the full text of the agreement on its website. The agreement signed on April 30 lays the groundwork for the creation of a fund that will operate as a limited partnership with the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation on the American side, and the Agency for Supporting Public-Private Partnership representing Ukraine. The future fund will be financed exclusively from new licenses. Fifty percent of revenues from new licenses in the fields of critical materials, oil, and gas, generated after the fund is created, will be directed to it, Svyrydenko said. Earlier leaked versions were met with backlash and caused speculation the agreement could have given the U.S. unprecedented access to revenues of state-owned Ukrainian giants, particularly in the energy sector. The agreement also provides a precise list of 57 mineral resources that the deal applies to, including strategic metals like uranium and lithium, rare earth elements, precious metals such as gold and platinum, oil, and natural gas. This list can be expanded only by agreement of both parties. The agreement stipulates that Ukrainian authorities must require anyone with mining or infrastructure licenses to share investment opportunities with the American-Ukrainian fund. Other interested parties cannot be offered more favorable terms if the fund shows interest in any investment, the agreement says. Earlier versions of the agreement also raised alarm over its potential conflict with an earlier agreement signed between Ukraine and the EU on its mineral resources in 2021. The newly signed deal requires any future investments under the fund to comply with Ukrainian and EU laws, without hindering Ukraine's EU accession process. "If, after the signing of this agreement, Ukraine needs to assume additional obligations related to its European Union accession that could impact this provision, the parties shall consult and negotiate in good faith to adopt adjustments,' the agreement reads. All income, contributions, and payments related to the fund activities in Ukraine will not be taxed, either in Ukraine or the U.S. In turn, the U.S. pledged not to impose restrictive trade tariffs on mineral products that the fund would buy from Ukraine. The document also guarantees free conversion of hryvnia to dollars for necessary transactions. If Ukraine's financial stability is threatened by foreign exchange shortages, the Ukrainian government may restrict currency conversion and transfers after consulting with the U.S. Treasury. Opposition MP Yaroslav Zhelezniak, who has had access to versions of the agreement and has been regularly commenting on it on his popular Telegram channel, called the deal's signing on April 30 'political' and just the first step toward further deals. This latest agreement requires ratification by Ukraine's parliament to come into effect, Zhelezniak said, adding that it could be voted on during parliamentary sessions between May 13-15, if all procedures can be completed in time. After ratification, two more parts of the mineral agreement will follow — a treaty between the DFC and the Agency from Ukraine, and a technical part. "Additionally, several laws will need to be amended, including specifically the Budget and Tax Codes," Zhelezniak wrote. Read also: The full text of the US, Ukraine minerals agreement We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.

ITV News

01-05-2025

ITV News