The Prime Minister of Ukraine, Denys Shmyhal, emphasized the importance of adhering to certain principles during negotiations with the United States regarding the agreement on mineral resources. He highlighted that Ukraine has clear “red lines” that cannot be crossed.
This is reported by Kyiv24
At a concluding press conference in Brussels, Shmyhal stated:
“First of all, it is our Constitution. Secondly, it is our European aspirations and our European commitments. Therefore, this is another red line – international legislation. We also understand that this must be a partnership agreement, meaning equal terms for both parties”
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He added that Ukraine is already forming a technical delegation and engaging international legal firms to participate in the negotiations. In the coming days, the Ukrainian team, along with lawyers, will head to the USA for technical negotiations.
Shmyhal noted that
“I believe that the technical negotiations will take place this weekend, next week, then we will see the results after these negotiations… We are quite optimistic because we need to find a solution on how to conclude this agreement, a partnership agreement in the truest sense”
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Additionally, the head of Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Andrii Sybiha, confirmed that the agreement is being analyzed for compliance with Ukrainian legislation, emphasizing that it should serve the interests of both countries. The minister stressed that the document cannot contradict Ukraine’s Euro-integration aspirations.
Moreover, U.S. President Donald Trump recently expressed concern about the possibility of Ukraine withdrawing from the agreement, warning of “big problems” in such a scenario. According to Bloomberg, Ukraine plans to amend the draft agreement, particularly regarding increasing American investments.
According to the Financial Times, the USA insists on concluding a new agreement that will cover all of Ukraine’s natural resources, including oil and gas, but does not offer any security guarantees for Kyiv. It was also noted that the previous version of the agreement did not contain the security guarantees that President Zelensky insisted upon.
Earlier in March, Ukraine and the USA agreed on an agreement regarding the development of critical mineral resources, but the attempt to sign the agreement was thwarted due to disputes between Trump and Zelensky.