The document delivered to Ukraine by the United States, a confidential draft dated February 7, has set off alarm bells in Kyiv, where there’s reportedly a sense of dismay and panic. This is largely due to a series of stringent conditions the US wants to impose on the invaded country, covering everything from the exploitation of its ports and infrastructure to access to its reserves of oil, gas, and other natural resources.
Until now, it was known that the US expects Ukraine to pay around $500 billion in rare earths and valuable minerals found in its subsoil. However, the draft goes further, stating that the US and Ukraine must form a joint investment fund to ensure “hostile parties to the conflict do not benefit from the reconstruction of Ukraine.” This move has caused confusion in Kyiv, as it suggests an “American economic colonization of Ukraine in perpetuity,” imposing a burden of virtually unassumable repairs.
According to the Telegraph, the possible agreement covers the “economic value associated with Ukraine’s resources,” including minerals, oil, and gas, key ports, and infrastructure, without clearly specifying what other assets could be involved. Moreover, the US would receive 50% of Ukraine’s recurring income from resource extraction, as well as 50% of the financial value of all new licenses granted to third parties. The agreement also grants the US a “right of retention on such income,” meaning Washington would have priority in collection, even before Ukraine can use those funds for its own development. Additionally, all future resource exploitation licenses would be subject to American preference, guaranteeing priority access over any other buyer.
President Zelenskyy initially proposed the idea of US participation in Ukraine’s rare earth and critical minerals production during a meeting with Trump in September 2024. Zelenskyy hoped this would encourage US companies to establish operations in Ukraine, deterring Russia from continuing its aggression, as many of these resources are located in eastern Ukraine and areas already conquered by Moscow.
A Load Similar to the Treaty of Versailles of 1919
The British newspaper claims that Washington intends to impose on Ukraine “conditions similar to those applied to defeated states in war,” arguing that they are even “more severe than the financial sanctions imposed on Germany and Japan after their defeat in 1945.” At that time, these countries received help for reconstruction instead of being subjected to unpayable reparations. If this agreement is accepted, Trump’s demands would represent a greater proportion of Ukrainian GDP as reparations imposed on Germany in the Treaty of Versailles of 1919.
Currently, it’s unknown what offer Trump’s team will make to Russia in the negotiations that started in Saudi Arabia. Some sources believe the White House is willing to exempt Russia from any financial responsibility for the destruction caused in Ukraine. In an interview with Fox News, Trump said that if Ukraine rejects the agreement, it could be “delivered to Putin on a tray.” “They may someday be Russian,” Trump said about the financial aid the US has delivered to Kyiv in three years of war, “or maybe not, but I want this money to return to me.”