After months of tense negotiations, the US and Ukraine have announced an agreement on the joint exploitation of Kyiv’s energy and mineral resources.
It will involve establishing a “Reconstruction Investment Fund” for Ukraine, to spur Kyiv’s economic recovery from its war with Russia.
Here are the latest developments:
The twists and turns of an historic deal
An historic natural resources deal between the US and Ukraine is finally over the line. But there have been plenty of twists and turns over the months it took to get here:
February 2025: Donald Trump first framed a possible deal as repaying US military aid to Ukraine. Trump said: “I say I want it back. And I told them that I want the equivalent, like $500bn worth of rare earth”
28 February: Volodymyr Zelensky travelled to Washington where he was expected to sign the agreement. But instead he faced an extraordinary dressing down by Trump in front of the world’s media. “You don’t have the cards right now…You’re gambling with millions of lives,” Trump yelled. Zelensky was told to leave White House and the deal was not signed
26 April: The prospect of resurrecting the deal increased after the two leaders had a far more amicable conversation at the funeral of Pope Francis
30 April: Following days of intense negotiations, both sides made some “last-minute changes” before finally getting the deal over the line
Trump says deal may give US ‘much more’ than it has spent on Ukraine aid
Donald Trump has just made his first public comments on the minerals deal, as he phoned in to a town hall on the NewsNation network.
He said the deal represents payback for the money the US has spent on the war so far.
“Biden handed them $350bn,” Trump said. He went on to add: “We made a deal where we get much more in theory than the $350bn.”
Trump has made the claim that the US has spent around $350 billion (£263 billion) on Ukraine aid on numerous occasions. But a BBC Verify analysis found the actual amount is much lower.
During the town hall, Trump said the previous arrangement with Ukraine left him feeling “foolish”.
Moderator Bill O’Reilly asked the president what he talked about when he sat with Zelensky at Pope Francis’ funeral last week.
“I was telling him that it’s a very good thing if we can produce a deal and you sign it,” Trump said.
Asked if the US’s presence in Ukraine might inhibit Russia’s movement in the region, he said “it could”.
UK foreign secretary welcomes minerals deal
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy has weighed in on the minerals deal, posting on X that he welcomes the economic partnership between the two countries.
“The UK’s support for Ukraine remains steadfast,” he wrote. “With our 100-year partnership, we are deepening economic and security ties for the future generations of both of our countries.”
Lammy has supported a ceasefire in Ukraine, announcing just yesterday that he spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio about bringing peace to the region.
Minerals deal is ‘a success’ – Ukrainian government advisor
We’ve just heard from an adviser to the Ukrainian government, who says the minerals deal is “a success”.
“It constitutes a part of the wider negotiating framework which we hope will lead to establishment of lasting, enduring and just peace,” Yuri Sak tells the BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme.
He adds that the deal took “longer than expected” to be signed, but repeats both sides “worked very hard” to make sure the deal is about “equal partnership”.
“It’s a deal about investment, it’s about mutually beneficial projects and we have to view this deal as part of the wider negotiating process and as such it’s a success.”
Trump-Zelensky Vatican meeting was turning point for the deal, says former US ambassador
As we’ve been reporting, the US and Ukraine signed a natural resources deal yesterday after months of negotiations.
A former US ambassador to Ukraine tells BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that this came after a turning point—when Trump and Zelensky spoke at the Vatican during the Pope’s funeral.
William B Taylor says that after speaking directly to Zelensky, Trump began to doubt that President Putin is a reliable partner. As a result, for Trump, this deal, which “started out as pretty lopsided”, has now become a “balanced mutually beneficial agreement”, according to Taylor.
While there’s no explicit military security guarantee in the document, Taylor says the provision for long-term investment in Ukraine is “an indication of seriousness” from the Americans.
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