President Donald Trump said Monday he wants to negotiate an agreement with Ukraine in which Kyiv guarantees supplies of rare earth metals, key elements used in electronics, in exchange for aid.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had floated such an idea last October as part of his "victory plan" for ending the war with Russia.
"We're looking to do a deal with Ukraine, where they're going to secure what we're giving them with their rare earths and other things," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday.
Asked by one reporter if he wanted Ukraine to give the resources to the United States, Trump replied: "Yeah, I want to have security of rare earths."
Zelensky, outlining his plan in October, said one part centered on protecting Ukraine's natural resources, "including critical metals worth trillions of U.S. dollars."
He said he would urge Kyiv's Western partners to secure a "special agreement on joint protection of critical resources available in Ukraine and joint investment and use of the corresponding economic potential."
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