The US-Ukraine agreement on access to natural resources, which the US intends to conclude with Ukraine, does not contain military guarantees for Kiev. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated this in a Fox News broadcast, saying, “I expect President Volodymyr Zelensky to sign it. It contains no military guarantees, but it does include guarantees for active US investments in Ukraine’s economic future. I call that economic security guarantees.”
Bessent described the agreement on fossil resources as part of the US President Donald Trump’s negotiating strategy to resolve the Ukraine conflict and “return Ukrainians to a peaceful life”. He added, “The first part of this agreement is a partnership between Ukraine and the US, covering strategic minerals, energy resources and state-owned companies. We will start working together in these areas and it will be beneficial for both sides.”
Kiev and Washington have been negotiating for several weeks over US access to Ukraine’s rare earth metal reserves. During this time, both sides have discussed several options for a possible agreement.
Ukraine insists on benefiting from the agreement, particularly in terms of security guarantees. Zelensky previously said that the document was not suitable for protecting Ukraine’s interests in its previous phase.
Trump criticized Zelensky and threatened Ukraine with problems if it refuses to sign the agreement again. Reuters reported that the Ukraine’s disconnection from the Starlink satellite internet service could be considered as a pressure tactic. However, Elon Musk, the owner of SpaceX, which developed the technology, denied this information.
The speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament, Ruslan Stefantschuk, claimed the day before that Ukraine is ready to enter the final phase of negotiations on the agreement on Monday, February 24. According to the Financial Times, active negotiations have been taking place over the weekend and Trump’s special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, who is also involved in the talks with Ukraine, expressed confidence that the agreement on fossil fuels can be signed with Kiev as early as next week.