The United States calls for Ukraine to agree to a “mineral diller”, which has a huge proportions. It demanded a 50 % share of the yield of its natural resources, ports and other infrastructure.
In exchange for the agreement, Ukraine would not get much. No security guarantees, no promises for additional support.
Still, Ukraine may have to sign a scary agreement.
In this way, the United States has tightened Ukraine in recent weeks in an exceptionally ugly play.
1. Show: The business man grabs the offer
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyi could make a fatal mistake last September.
He introduced the US President For Joe Biden and presidential candidate For Donald Trump vision to overcome the Ukrainian war.
At the core was the idea that Ukraine would give the United States huge mineral resources. In return, Ukraine would receive NATO membership and the United States of military assistance that would really stop Russia.
Biden considered the plan unrealistic.
The business man Trump, on the other hand, decided to take the proposal after becoming president.
However, Trump only remembered the other side of the proposal: the Ukrainian minerals.
2. Display: Hour of the time to sign a “offer”
The actual tightening of Ukraine began two weeks ago.
On February 10, Trump said on Fox News in the news channel that he wanted Ukraine minerals worth $ 500 billion.
– They either sign a contract or do not enter into a contract. They may one day be part of Russia or they are not part of Russia some day, Trump threatened straightforwardly.
Two days later the US new Finance Minister Scott Bessent arrived to negotiate in Kiev.
Bessent, a business background, reached out to Zelensky, in which Ukraine should have given 50 %, half of all natural resources, ports and other infrastructure income to the United States.
Ukraine has potentially large mineral resources.
In particular, it currently has rare earth metals that are feverishly needed by the technology industry.
The draft agreement The Telegraph Describe the agreement as a paper drawn up by corporate lawyers, where Americans would gain almost complete control over Ukraine’s natural resources.
There were no security guarantees for Ukraine in the agreement. Nor did it show whether the mineral money would only replace previous US support or whether they would be a fee for something to come.
The claims of Americans were like a war compensation requirement for the lost country. According to the Telegraph, the amount required of Ukraine is higher than the war compensation claimed in Versailles’ agreement after the First World War.
Giant war compensation required from Germany has been considered one of the key reasons Adolf Hitler to the rise. The amount was so huge that Germany was completed until 2010.
Bessent demanded Zelensky to sign the contract immediately. There was one hour.
Zelenskyi asked for time to explore the agreement and refused to sign.
3. Display: Another offer and pressure will intensify
The next big meeting was in mid -February at the Munich Security Conference where Zelenskyi met the US Vice President JD VANCE and the Foreign Minister Marco Rubion.
The Ukrainians still expected to receive some promises from the United States. Instead, the Americans again introduced a new version of the mineral agreement.
It was reportedly a bit better for Ukraine, but it still did not promise Ukraine any new support.
Zelenskyi surprised the Americans by saying that he has no authority to sign a contract without parliament’s approval.
The United States then showed that it could completely ignore Ukraine.
On February 18 Sergei Lavrov With Saudi Arabia.
After the meeting, Rubio annoyed that Russia and the United States could face great financial opportunities.
The Economist According to the newspaper, the Russians have already promised the Americans a back gate for valuable Ukraine’s valuable mineral resources. Most of them are located in areas occupied by Russia in eastern Ukraine.
As Zelenskyi criticized the US and Russia negotiating Ukraine over its head, Trump replied furiously. He falsely accused Ukraine that began the whole war and called Zelensky a dictator.
4. Show: A much worse offer
At the same time, Ukraine tried to make counter offers to the United States.
On Friday, the United States once again introduced the new agreement proposal.
By the draft The New York Times According to it, it was even worse than the first proposal.
Now, Trump’s previously made demand for $ 500 billion to the United States had been added to it.
The amount is more than four times the support provided by the United States for Ukraine throughout the war.
With the current mining production of Ukraine, it would take hundreds of years to pay that amount to the United States.
Ukraine was still not promised any security guarantee or new support.
The Trump Administration’s people have justified the agreement by the fact that American business benefits in Ukraine would guarantee that the United States would protect Ukraine.
But according to information leaked to different media, there is nothing concrete about how this would actually happen.
Zelenskyin stated on Sunday that the agreement was unfair and Ukraine cannot accept it in any way.
However, Americans are convinced that Ukraine will sign the agreement in the next few days.
And they may not be wrong.
5. Showing: “an offer that cannot be refused”
On Monday, it became known that the Americans had become a new draft agreement again.
The New York Times It had removed the $ 500 billion claim for compensation.
But the United States still demanded half of Ukraine’s natural resources. No security guarantee or new support for Ukraine is promised.
On Monday of the Russian President Vladimir Putin He stated that American companies could use the natural resources of the Ukrainian regions occupied by Russia together with the Russians.
Now the contract offered to Ukraine is terrible, but the option may be even more terrible for Ukraine.
Elon Musk has threatened to prevent Ukraine from using the StarLink satellite connections it owns if the contract does not occur. Those connections are absolutely essential for the Ukraine front.
Ukraine is also afraid that if it rejects the agreement, the United States will completely turn against it.
The Economist estimates that Trump has made a mafia style for Ukraine “an offer that cannot be refused”.