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News Link • Ukraine

War in Ukraine - The Mineral Deal Pulls Trump Back in

• https://www.lewrockwell.com, Moon of Alabama

The deal grew out of a scheme the (former) President Zelenski had peddled within the framework of his 'victory plan' last year. He had hopped to entice further support in form of weapons and even direct military intervention against Russia in exchange for some access to rare earth minerals in Ukraine. With the current deal Trump took the second part without offering any guarantee for providing the first.

What the now signed deal really entails is still unknown. The text of the framework agreement was published (in Russian) by the Ukrainian government. There are however two additional agreements which define the all important details.

The Ukrainian government claims that only the first part has been signed. The other two will follow only after the Ukrainian parliament, the Rada, has ratified the main one. Several 'western' media have contradicted that claim. All three parts of the agreement were signed. But the Ukrainian government is keeping the details of the second and third part secret because the conditions imposed by them are extremely bad for Ukraine.

As Strana has summarized (machine translation):

The document published by the Ukrainian government and signed yesterday does not contain any specifics on the fundamental aspects of the fund's activities.

In particular, the details of the fund's management and the decision-making mechanism for disposing of funds received by the fund are not specified.

There is only a reference to the fact that the distribution of shares in the fund, its management principles and other specific issues will be regulated by an additional limited partnership agreement, which, according to the Ukrainian authorities, has yet to be signed (recall, the American media write that it has already been approved).

In the published text of the agreement, the goal of the fund (Partnership) is extremely vague: "to become a flagship mechanism for encouraging transparent, accountable and future-oriented investments in critical sectors of the Ukrainian economy in support of the country's recovery strategy."

At the same time, the text of the agreement contains clear commitments on contributions to the fund from Ukraine (50% of the cost of new mineral development licenses), but does not contain specific commitments on contributions from the United States. There is also no commitment from Washington to continue military assistance. It is only written that if there are still arms deliveries, they will be counted as an American contribution to the fund.

The agreement will without doubt be used by the U.S. to rob Ukraine of whatever valuables it has left.

At the same time it does not commit the U.S. to do anything.

With this capitulation Zelenski has fulfilled everything the Trump administration had demanded from him for a ceasefire. The U.S. has, however, no means to press Russia into a ceasefire. President Putin and other Russian officials have made it clear that they have no interest in just stopping the fighting but want a long lasting peace agreement.

The Trump administration has neither the will nor the capabilities to negotiate and enter into long term peace agreement with Russia.

1 Comments in Response to

Comment by PureTrust
Entered on:

Catch that last line, above: "The Trump administration has neither the will nor the capabilities to negotiate and enter into long term peace agreement with Russia." Then remember that the Ukraine war is a proxy war between the West and Russia, with Ukraine as the proxy. So the thing that Trump needs to do is make a deal with Russia to do the 'proxy' mining for the US in Ukraine. This will bring about peace, right?



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