Photo: Depositphotos
On Thursday, Ukraine and the United States took an important step towards concluding a large-scale economic agreement: the parties signed a memorandum of intent to cooperate in the field of mineral resources. This was reported by First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Yulia Svyrydenko, Reuters reports.
“We are pleased to announce the signing of a Memorandum of Intent with our American partners, which paves the way for an Economic Partnership Agreement and the creation of the Investment Fund for the Reconstruction of Ukraine,” Svyrydenko wrote on social media.
The signing of the memorandum was the result of a visit by a Ukrainian delegation to Washington at the end of last week. According to the agency, the administration of President Donald Trump proposed a new format for the agreement, broader and more ambitious than the previous framework document, which was never signed.
During a speech at the White House, Trump confirmed: “We have a minerals deal that I believe we will sign on Thursday.” He insists that the United States should receive privileged access to Ukraine’s natural resources and strategic minerals as compensation for the military assistance the US provided to Ukraine under Joe Biden’s presidency.
Sitting next to Trump in the Oval Office, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that the parties are still working on the details of the future agreement. According to him, the signing of the full 80-page agreement could take place next Friday.
“This is essentially what we agreed on earlier. We went straight to the big deal, and that’s what we intend to sign,” Bessent said.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy also confirmed the signing of the memorandum and said that this was only the beginning. “This is a memorandum of intent. And we have positive, constructive intentions,” he said in Kyiv, adding that the final agreement would require ratification by the Verkhovna Rada.
According to Svyrydenko, the document records the progress made in the negotiations and opens up opportunities for large-scale US investment in Ukraine’s economic recovery, especially in the field of critical minerals.
