Baku, TurkicWorld
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed on Thursday that the US is constantly changing the terms of a key minerals agreement, saying there is currently “no issue on the agenda” that would warrant a trip to Washington, TurkicWorld reports citing Anadolu.
Speaking to journalists following the Leaders’ Summit on Support for Ukraine in France, Zelenskyy expressed frustration over the lack of a final agreement on Ukraine’s rare earth minerals cooperation with the US.
“At the end of the day, they constantly change the terms,” he said. “I’m not going to Washington because there’s no issue on the agenda.”
The Ukrainian leader said multiple drafts and frameworks have already been discussed. “We have a lot of these agreements about the minerals, and I’d like to treat it not theoretically, but in practical terms,” he said.
Zelenskyy noted that Ukrainian and US teams are now working on a full version of the deal.
“America is changing the rules and proposing a full agreement, but it requires a detailed, thorough study… serious agreements that will be brought before the parliament and ratified,” he added.
He emphasized that lawyers have been reviewing multiple versions, first a framework deal and now a revised one under new terms. “We have to act in a reserved manner,” Zelenskyy said.
The proposed rare earth minerals deal is seen as a major step in US-Ukraine economic ties, especially as Kyiv seeks to leverage its strategic resources amid the ongoing war with Russia.
