The deal comes as Ukraine and Russia are engaged in ongoing cease-fire talks.
The United States and Ukraine on April 30 signed a partnership agreement covering Ukraine’s rare earth metals and other natural resources, according to both U.S. and Ukrainian officials.
“This agreement signals clearly to Russia that the Trump Administration is committed to a peace process centered on a free, sovereign, and prosperous Ukraine over the long term,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.
“And to be clear, no state or person who financed or supplied the Russian war machine will be allowed to benefit from the reconstruction of Ukraine.”
Ukrainian First Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko confirmed that she signed the agreement for Ukraine on April 30.
“Together with the United States, we are creating the Fund that will attract global investment into our country,” Svyrydenko wrote in a post on social media platform X.
U.S. President Donald Trump has been working for months on a deal in which the United States could gain access to Ukraine’s natural resources.
Negotiations for this economic partnership hit an early setback during a Feb. 28 White House meeting in which Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy clashed in front of the gathered media over how best to settle the ongoing Russia–Ukraine war.
U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators have continued to revisit the discussions on Ukraine’s natural resources in the weeks that followed Zelenskyy’s White House visit.
Although Bessent signaled that the Trump administration is ready to finalize an agreement, he indicated that U.S. and Ukrainian representatives may not be on the same page.
“Ukrainians decided, last night, to make some last-minute changes. Well, we’re sure that they will reconsider,” Bessent said.
During a telethon earlier on April 30, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal announced that Svyrydenko had departed for Washington to sign a deal.
The agreement will now be submitted to the Ukrainian Parliament for ratification.
In a series of posts on social media platform X, Svyrydenko said that the agreement “provides mutually beneficial conditions for both countries.”
“The US affirms its commitment to long-term peace in Ukraine and acknowledges Ukraine’s contribution to global security—including its decision to give up nuclear weapons,” she said.
According to Svyrydenko, the Ukrainian government will retain full ownership and control of extracting operations and resources, and that includes state-owned companies.
The fund will operate as an equal partnership between the United States and Ukraine, and it does not include provisions regarding any debt obligations to the United States. The United States will work through the International Development Finance Corp. (DFC).
Svyrydenko noted that the agreement complies with Ukraine’s laws and its desire to also integrate further with Europe.
“Importantly, the Agreement sends a signal to global partners that long-term cooperation with Ukraine—over decades—is not only possible but reliable,” she said.
By Ryan Morgan
