MOSCOW, March 27. /TASS/. Ukraine is not prepared to sign the minerals deal that was handed over to it by the United States on March 23, Verkhovna Rada (parliament) member Yaroslav Zheleznyak said on YouTube.
"The Ukrainian side has not yet given its consent [to the latest deal]. The economic ministry is working on that," he said, citing sources in the Ukrainian government and a copy of the agreement that had been handed over to him.
Zheleznyak added that the agreement will require parliamentary approval. Moreover, the country’s laws on budget and taxes will also have to be amended to put it into practice, and the necessary changes are also to be approved by the parliament.
"This is a lengthy political process. In my view, we [the parliament] will not approve the agreement in its current form," he said.
In his video, Zheleznyak presented a copy of the document to prove that he was not making all this up. He also said that the treaty will apply to all government revenues generated by mineral resources, and also revenues from the petrochemical sector. The United States will not get the minerals - including rare earths - or profits from their sale, but they will have first claim to them. The United States will also have first dibs on all contracts related to infrastructure projects on the territory of Ukraine.
The breakdown of how government revenues from mining and other activities involving minerals will be shared, which Kiev will be obliged to hand over to Washington, is to be determined by a separate document. That one has yet to be drafted. The money will be converted into the currency needed and taken out of the country via a special account. The financial operations will be conducted under the aegis of the US International Development Finance Corporation, who will also control access of private investors to projects in Ukraine.
This version of the agreement makes no mention of US control or any other involvement in the operations of Ukrainian ports and nuclear power plants.
Previously, Vladimir Zelensky said the United States had submitted a new minerals deal to Ukraine. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday the agreement may be signed as early as next week.
The signing of the minerals deal was postponed following the February 28 verbal spat between Vladimir Zelensky and US President Donald Trump at the White House. At a later meeting in the Saudi city of Jeddah, the parties decided to make an agreement on the development of Ukraine's critical mineral resources in order to strengthen the country’s economy.