Kiev “They could become the richest country in Europe!”
Thus glowing a republican sinatoric Lindsey Graham Ukraine in an interview with CBS channel in June.
Graham claimed that Ukraine would have a reserve of up to 12,000 billion in the country’s weapon.
“I don’t want to give that money and funds to Putin to share with China,” Graham said.
Ukrainian geologists have also estimated that Ukraine might be located up to 5 % the world’s critical mineral deposit.
Estimates of Ukraine’s natural resources vary greatly. In any case, there are thousands of billions of dollars.
Also US President Donald Trump has smelled money.
– I want a deal with Ukraine, where we get their rare metals in exchange for US help, Trump said to reporters In a white house.
Trump spoke of rare metals, but probably meant more generally critical metals, including lithium.
Donald Trump, who has been president for a couple of weeks, has shocked the world and talked about taking over the regions in Panama, Canada, Greenland and Gaza.
For Ukraine, Trump’s efforts may be asset.
– This is the right way. It is a strategy that allows us to get potential security and at the same time Ukraine earns money, a researcher Oleksandr Krajev says . Krajev, a United States, works at the Ukrainian Prisma Institute.
An expert in the Ukrainian mining industry agrees.
– I’ve been waiting for this for nine years! We have long known that this would be a way to save the country because international investments will help to protect our people, Ukraine mining industry CEO of NGO Xenija Oryshak says.
According to him, the US senator Graham did not exaggerate, saying that Ukraine could become the richest country in Europe.
If invested in the mining industry, Ukraine’s GDP could rise by up to tens of billions of dollars over the next few years, says Orynkhak.
Ukraine’s GDP was approximately 200 billion in 2021.
Natural resources part of the peace plan
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyi Said last week that he was ready to cooperate with the use of natural resources with the United States.
Trump’s comment was probably anything but a surprise to Ukraine.
– This point was planned for Zelensky’s profit plan for Trump, says CEO Krajev.
According to him, the background is the Senator Graham, who is close to Trump.
Could the US desire to be accessible to Ukraine’s natural resources even a decisive factor in possible peace talks?
Yes, says Krajev.
In this way, according to him, the Ukrainians are trying to raise the value of the matter in discussions with the United States:
– If you want full access to natural resources, we need to talk about safety, NATO and regional integrity in addition to joint investment projects, Krajev says.
A large geopolitical game
Critical metals have become an increasingly important part of geopolitical superpower struggle.
Demand is estimated Increasingly exploding as fossil fuels decrease.
In particular, the hot topic is lithium known as “white gold”. It is essential, for example, in electric cars and phones.
China has an almost monopoly position in the production and processing of rare metals. Now both the EU and the United States want to get DEGRETING ADDITIONAL.
Therefore, Ukraine has the opportunity to become an important partner.
“This is especially about uranium, titanium, lithium, graphite and other strategically valuable natural resources that strengthen either Russia and its allies or the Ukraine and the democratic world in global competition,” said Zelenskyi in the Ukraine Parliament in November.
The EU is on its turn compiled a list of 34 to be critical And of minerals classified as strategic. For example, the aim is to ensure that no more than 65 % of a particular raw material should come from any single country.
However, there are no quick quick winnings for Trump in Ukraine.
Most of the riches are located in eastern Ukraine
The biggest problem in Ukraine is that most of the presence of critical minerals is located in the eastern part of the country. For example, there are four lithium deposits, probably two of which are already located in areas occupied by Russia.
The Lithium in the Lithium of ševchenkivske is the largest in Ukraine and is located in the current center of battles near the city of Kurahovi. Russians declared he had conquered the performance in January.
Already in the past the core of the Russian state Rosatom applied for permission to take advantage of the deposit.
Another problem is investment. For example, in Ukraine, lithium does not yet excavate.
Even if the United States would invest large sums in the mining industry, profits could only be gained in years.
-It would take at least three years, says a representative of the company that owns the most potential lithium in Ukraine Denys Aljoshyn says .
The titanium gets returns faster
However, in the defense industry, the story is different for the vital titanium. Ukraine has the largest warehouse in Europe in titanium.
“Just by investing in titanium production, Trump could gain the fastest benefit for himself,” says Oryshk.
Ukraine law prevents the disclosure of deposits to foreigners. According to local mining trials, this is a huge problem.
Russia wants the natural resources of Ukraine
According to Oryshkk, access to Ukraine’s natural resources may be one of the main motivators of Russia for an attack in Ukraine.
– Moscow knows exactly the natural crime of Ukraine because this was one geological system. If we compare the map of Russian military operations and the map of geological Ukraine, we will clearly see what they are looking for, says Oryshak.
However, Russia itself has huge mineral deposits. Why would it like to take them from Ukraine?
– In Russia, it has been realized that Ukraine has a tremendous opportunity to develop. And they understand that if we get rich, we will never become a country that would sit at the conference table with it, Oryshak says.
So it can be just as important to Russia deprive Ukraine The opportunity for development and at the same time funds war with the natural resources of Ukraine.
– Russia has enough land. But to destroy Ukraine, Putin must proceed, Zelenskyi wrote in X Saturday.
Russia also pursued in the past by destroying Ukraine grain.