President Donald Trump said Friday that his administration is “quite close” to reach an agreement with Ukraine for rights to access his natural resources in exchange for billions of dollars from the United States in support of the country against Russia .
“You know, I think they want it, and they feel good,” Trump told journalists on Friday at the Oval office after the Ceremony of the Howard Lutnick's trade ceremony. “And it's significant. It's a big problem. But they want it and keep us in that country. And they are very happy with that.
“We received our money. They should have been signed long before entering. They should have been signed by Biden. But Biden did not know too much about what he was doing. The war should never have happened, No. 1. When it happened, it could have been resolved.
“The first week or two weeks after that, he got bad. He got really bad, but it should have been, he should never have happened. And he should have established himself, and he could have resolved very easily at the beginning. It is now more difficult, but We will solve it. “
Trump calls the Zelenskyy of Ukraine a 'dictator without elections' as the crack is extended
During his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Friday, Trump National Security Advisor Mike Waltz said: “Here is the final result: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will sign that agreement, and see it in the short term ”
Waltz also told “Fox & Friends” this week that Ukraine should “mitigate” his criticism to Trump and “return to the table” to resolve an economic agreement with the United States.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and President Donald Trump are “quite close” to reach an agreement with Ukraine to access their natural resources. (Kay Nietfeld/Picture Alliance/Curtis Means/Daily Mail/Bloomberg)
The agreement for American access to rare land minerals of Ukraine is part of broader negotiations to end war in Ukraine after Russia invaded the country in 2022.
The secretary of the Treasury, Scott Besent, told Fox News Wednesday, Trump is creating a “win-win” association between the United States and Ukraine with the agreement days after meeting with Zelenskyy in kyiv.
“Part of my trip was to go and tell the Ukrainian people that we wanted an economic association with them,” Besent told Bret Baier in “Special Report.”
“Then, President Trump's vision is [to] Economically join the Ukrainian people and the American people, demonstrate the Ukrainian people to support them, show the US people that the money that goes to Ukraine, that there will be a return, that there will be a long -Thermal Sociation. “
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The Trump administration is trying to recover the cost of aid sent to the country devastated by war by obtaining access to rare minerals such as titanium, iron and uranium.
The delay is also produced amid increasing tensions between Trump and Zelenskyy while the United States works with Russian officials to negotiate a peace agreement in the current war.
Trump argued that Fox News Zelenskyy does not have “cards” to negotiate the leverage of an agreement, since the couple has publicly launched insults in recent days.
“I have been seeing this man for years when his cities are demolished, since his people are killed, as his soldiers are decimated,” Trump told Fox News coanfrerion Brian Kilmeade.
The United States Secretary of the United States, Scott Besent, on the left, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speak during a press conference in Kyiv on February 12. (Tetiana Dzhafarova/AFP through Getty Images)
“I've been seeing it negotiate without letters. He has no letters and you get tired of them,” he added. “You simply get tired of that and I have had it.”
Trump argued that Zelenskyy is a poor negotiator, pointing Besent He traveled to Ukraine Last week to negotiate a mineral agreement, with a value of hundreds of billions of dollars, but said the couple “could not even approach” an agreement.
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The president said the trip was dangerous for Besent and a waste of time.
The agreement would have helped us investments in the nation devastated by war and also provided “the best security guarantee that they could expect,” according to Waltz.
Fox News Bailee Hill contributed to this report.
