US President Donald Trump plans to return "billions of dollars" spent on Ukraine's defense against Russia.
"I want Ukraine to give us something in return for the money we spent. That's why we're asking for rare earth elements and oil, everything we can get," he said.
Speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Maryland, Trump noted that European countries have provided Ukraine with loans, but the United States has not, and therefore they should be compensated in some way.
"We want our money back, it's just unfair," the US leader said.
He believes that Washington and Kiev are "very close to reaching an agreement" on mineral resources. "We need to get closer to a deal because it's a very difficult situation," Trump added.
Media: Zelensky not ready to sign deal with US yet
Sky News reported that President Volodymyr Zelensky is not ready to sign the deal in its current form, which would give the country the right to develop rare earth deposits.
"The deal is not ready to be signed yet, there are a number of problematic issues, and the president is not ready to accept it in its current form. Today's drafts do not reflect the partnership in the deal and only contain unilateral obligations on the part of Ukraine," a Ukrainian source said.
US National Security Advisor Mike Walz said the deal would go through.
"The bottom line is that President Zelensky will sign this deal, and you will see it in the very near future," he said at a conference in Maryland.
US negotiators are believed to have raised the possibility of Ukraine restricting its access to Elon Musk's vital Starlink satellite internet system if it does not agree to the deal.
According to The New York Times, Ukraine has received a new version of the agreement from the United States, but some of its terms are even tougher than the previous version brought to Kiev by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant on February 14.
The Ukrainian side has not yet said whether it will agree to the deal on the proposed terms. According to the speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, Ruslan Stefanchuk, a government-level group will begin working on the agreement on February 24, and Ukraine wants to receive clear security guarantees in exchange for giving Washington access to its resources.
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