Ukraine has reached a significant agreement with the United States to allocate 50% of the benefits from the exploitation of its yet-to-be-exploited natural resources to a joint investment fund. This fund, in which the US will have greater decision-making power, aims to make investments in the Ukrainian economy. Sources from the Ukrainian presidential office confirmed this development to the Kyiv Independent publication.
According to Ukrainska Pravda, the final document accepted by Kyiv excludes conditions included in previous drafts presented by the US, which had envisioned contributions to the fund reaching $500 billion. However, Ukraine was unable to secure a commitment from the US to continue supporting Ukraine in writing in exchange for the economic benefits provided by the agreement.
Notably, one of the final agreement clauses prohibits the transfer of money from the fund to third parties without the agreement of both the US and Ukraine. This stipulation ensures a level of transparency and cooperation between the two nations in managing the fund.
The agreement is expected to be signed in the coming days, as announced by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, following a conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump had made it a condition for Kyiv to commit to these terms in order to release US funds aimed at helping Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression. Initially, Zelenskyy was reluctant to accept the terms, considering them abusive. Nonetheless, he recognized the necessity of signing the US proposal to continue receiving security support from Ukraine’s main ally.