The administration of US President Donald Trump, as part of the minerals agreement in exchange for military aid, demanded from Ukraine 50% of the revenues from resource extraction and 50% of the value of «all new licenses issued to third parties». This follows from the draft agreement, which was reviewed by the British publication The Telegraph.
The draft agreement states that «for all future licenses, the US will have the right of first refusal on minerals». Washington will have sovereign immunity and will gain almost complete control over the majority of Ukraine's raw material and resource economy. According to the publication, the document was drafted by private lawyers, not by US government or trade departments. At the same time, the agreement, according to its authors, should be governed by New York law.
Trump's demand goes far beyond US control over Ukraine's critical minerals and covers everything from ports and infrastructure to oil and gas, as well as the entire resource base of the country.
The terms of the contract, which reached Vladimir Zelensky's office a week ago, imply indefinite economic colonization of Ukraine by the US. They are worse than the reparations imposed on Germany and Japan after their defeat in 1945.
President Zelensky himself proposed the idea of giving the US a direct stake in Ukrainian rare earth elements and critical minerals during a visit, hoping that the presence of American companies in the country would prevent Putin from attacking again, especially since some deposits are located near the front line. However, he did not expect to face conditions usually imposed on aggressor states defeated in war, not to mention that this agreement violates Ukrainian law.
Trump said that the US has already spent $300 billion on the war and added that it would be «foolish» to give more. In fact, the amount of the five packages agreed by Congress is $175 billion, of which $70 billion was spent in the US on weapons production. Part of these funds is provided as humanitarian grants, but the majority are lend-lease funds that must be repaid.
During the Munich conference, Zelensky «politely refused» to sign the agreement with the US on minerals in its current form, reported CNN and The Washington Post.
Photo: AP