US President Donald Trump is considering revising the terms of a rare earth deal with Ukraine to gain access to the country’s key energy facilities reports say.
The updated agreement, as penned by the White House, may include a provision granting Washington control over Ukrainian nuclear power plants, the Financial Times reported Thursday, citing Ukrainian officials.
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In addition, the Trump administration is seeking detailed clarification on the ownership and management of a joint investment fund as part of the deal, which would be implemented by US corporations, not the federal government of the United States.
Speaking at the White House on Thursday, Trump declared that the United States would sign a deal with Ukraine “very shortly” to gain access to its rare earths and other minerals.
Ukrainian officials told the Financial Times that the Trump administration has not yet formally presented the revised terms to Kyiv. “But I realise that... they’re working on a bigger agreement,” one official said.
On March 19, Trump spoke by phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, shortly after Trump’s nearly two-hour conversation with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. According to a White House statement, Trump told Zelensky that “American ownership” of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants would be the “best protection” for them.
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Zelensky, however, denied discussing any transfer of ownership with Trump. Speaking at the press conference in Oslo on Thursday, March 20, he said that all nuclear plants legally belonged to the Ukrainian people but that Kyiv was open to US investment once Ukraine got back control of the Zaporizhzhia plant, seized by Russian troops at the start of the war.
Kyiv likely views placing nearly all of Ukraine’s energy grid under control of any foreign power, or its for-profit industry, could be an enormous national security risk, while welcoming foreign investment.
“We will not discuss it. We have 15 nuclear power units in operation today. This all belongs to our nation,” Zelensky said. “If they want to take it back from the Russians, if they want to modernize it, invest – this is a different question, this is an open question, we can talk about it,” he added.
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