'Not just rare earth minerals, but...': Ukraine, US talks on new minerals deal next week | Here's what Trump wants now

Ukraine will send a team to the US next week to begin further negotiations on a new draft of the rare earth minerals deal that would give the US access to Ukraine's mineral resources, Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko said, according to a report.

“The new draft agreement from the U.S. shows that the intention to create a fund or jointly invest remains,” Svyrydenko told the Associated Press, during a trip to northern Ukraine.

The Ukrainian delegation will include representatives from the Ministries of Economy, Foreign Affairs, Justice and Finance.

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Svyrydenko said, "What we have now is a document that reflects the position of the U.S. Treasury legal team. This is not a final version, it’s not a joint position.”

She added that Ukraine's task now is to assemble a technical team for negotiations, define its red lines and send a delegation to the US for technical talks as early as next week.

“It’s clear that the full parameters of this agreement can’t be discussed online,” Svyrydenko said. “We need to sit down with the teams and continue the conversation in person.”

The US and Ukraine were supposed to sign the minerals deal in February, however the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky did not turn out well, which postponed the signing of the deal.

What is there in the new draft?

The new document presents a new US proposal that goes beyond a previous framework agreed upon in February.

The new draft includes not only rare-earth minerals but gas and oil too.

However, the new draft got leaked, following which, Zelensky ordered a formal investigation into the leak of a recent US proposal concerning profits from Ukraine’s energy and mineral assets.

The leak comes as tensions grow between Kyiv and the Trump administration over the conditions of a proposed agreement involving critical energy and mineral resources.

The draft agreement was made public on 26 March by opposition MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak, who claimed to have obtained a copy. Speaking at a press briefing on 28 March, Zelensky called the leak “strange” and questioned how the information had been passed on. “I wonder who is transmitting this information,” he said.

Notably, Ukraine holds significant deposits of more than 20 minerals, which are deemed critical by the US, including titanium, which is used to make aircraft wings, lithium, key to several battery technologies, and uranium, used in nuclear power.

(With inputs from agencies)