NEW YORK, April 19. /TASS/. Ukraine remains one of the most corrupt countries in the world, despite the billions of taxpayer dollars allocated to it, US national security advisor Mike Waltz said.
"Ukraine was and is one of the most corrupt countries in the world. We always have to guard the [US] taxpayer dollars, and there have been billions going in," he told the Fox News TV channel in an interview.
Waltz added that Vladimir Zelensky could’ve "sat side-by-side" with US President Donald Trump after signing the minerals deal, but instead he chose to cause a scandal.
On April 17, Ukraine and the US signed a memorandum as part of a future minerals deal. The signing of the deal was canceled on February 28 after Zelensky objected to it during a meeting with Trump at the White House. The memorandum enshrines the parties' intention to create an investment fund.
The latest draft of the minerals deal, on which the US and Ukraine are working, obligates Kiev to reimburse over $120 billion in aid. On April 24, Zelensky acknowledged that Ukraine had received at least $105 billion worth of weapons and other aid from the US, although he had previously cited a smaller amount. On April 25, Trump said that Ukraine has not yet signed the minerals deal with the United States and expressed hope that it would be signed as soon as possible.