Washington, (TDI): Donald Trump announced that he wants to secure rare earth materials from Ukraine as part of U.S. support towards Ukraine in the recent Russia-Ukraine war.
Trump stated that he aims to reach an agreement with Ukraine to access its rare earth materials in exchange for ongoing U.S. assistance in the war against Russia, on Tuesday.
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He noted that the U.S. has provided more military and economic aid to Ukraine than European countries have. He said,
“We’re looking to do a deal with Ukraine where they’re going to secure what we’re giving them with their rare earth and other things.”
Trump mentioned he received word from the Ukrainian government that they might agree to provide the U.S. access to materials important for today’s high-tech economy. He stated,
“I want to have the security of rare earth. We’re putting in hundreds of billions of dollars. They have great rare earth. And I want the security of the rare earth, and they’re willing to do it.”
Earlier, Trump had suggested he would quickly end the war. He commented that talks are moving forward to resolve the conflict. Trump stated,
“We made a lot of progress in Russia and Ukraine. We’ll see what happens. We’re going to stop that ridiculous war.”
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In response to Trump’s statement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that negotiations between the U.S. and Russia without Ukrainian permission are not acceptable. He stated on this concern,
“They may have their relations, but talking about Ukraine without us is dangerous for everyone.”
Zelenskyy added that his team has been in touch with the Trump administration, but those talks are still at a very mediocre level. Zelenskyy believes that an in-person meeting will happen soon to negotiate these specific agreements.
In my interview for Associated Press I highlighted that Russia doesn’t want to end the war fairly. It wants to end it by destroying Ukraine’s freedom and independence. This isn’t rhetoric—it’s their objective. They haven’t achieved their main goal: Ukraine still stands. Thanks to… pic.twitter.com/mNqWkd7QwZ
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 2, 2025