Ukraine Ready to Sign US Resources Deal in a Matter of Hours

Ukraine is ready to sign a natural resources deal with the US, a person familiar with the matter said, in a move that could bolster Washington’s support for Kyiv by strengthening their economic partnership.

The draft agreement, which envisages creating a joint fund to manage Ukraine’s investment projects, has been finalized and may be signed as soon as Wednesday, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the talks are private. Ukrainian Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko is on her way to Washington for the signing, they said.

Negotiations over the deal, which will allow the US privileged access to new investment projects to develop Ukraine’s natural resources including aluminum, graphite, oil and natural gas, has been in works since February. The Ukrainian Cabinet is prepared to approve the deal, which will need to be ratified by the country’s parliament on Wednesday, the person said.

As part of the agreement, the US and Ukraine will seek to create the conditions to “increase investment in mining, energy, and related technology in Ukraine,” according to the draft of the document seen by Bloomberg News. Washington also acknowledges Kyiv’s intentions for the deal to avoid any conflict with its plans to join the European Union — long seen as a red line for Ukraine in the talks.

In another breakthrough, the US has agreed that only future military assistance it may provide to Ukraine following the signing of the deal would count toward its contribution to the fund, according to the document. Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said Sunday that Washington had dropped its insistence on inclusion in the deal of the tens of billions of dollars in aid delivered since the start of Russia’s invasion.

The signing could come as President Donald Trump grows increasingly frustrated over delays in clinching a ceasefire in the war, currently into its fourth year. He has questioned whether Russian President Vladimir Putin is willing to make progress toward a peace plan that Trump sought to deliver within the first 100 days of his new administration. Trump is “confident” a deal on critical minerals will be signed with Ukraine, the White House said on Tuesday.

The agreement “strengthens the strategic partnership between the Parties for the long-term reconstruction and modernization of Ukraine, in response to the large-scale destruction caused by Russia’s full-scale invasion,” according to the document.

Two other technical accords that will determine how the joint fund is going to operate have yet to be finalized, the person said.

The US Treasury Department spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to a request for a comment.

US and Ukrainian officials signed a memorandum of intent earlier in April, and continued to hash out the technical details of the deal, which would grant the US first claim on profits transferred into a special reconstruction investment fund that would be controlled by Washington.

A previous attempt to clinch the agreement fell through earlier this year after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy clashed with Trump and Vice President JD Vance in the Oval Office. Zelenskiy met one-on-one with the US president at the Vatican on Saturday before the funeral of Pope Francis.

Russia intensified its  across Ukraine’s frontline and several cities overnight, as the Kremlin takes a maximalist line in peace negotiations brokered by the US. While Trump envoy Steve Witkoff sought to persuade Putin that Russia should agree to a ceasefire that halts fighting along the current frontlines, the Russian leader insisted Moscow must take full control of four regions of Ukraine which it claims but doesn’t fully occupy, Bloomberg News reported.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reiterated on Tuesday that Trump was getting frustrated with the difficulty of getting both Ukraine and Russia to agree to a peace deal, but that “he remains optimistic that we can get this done.”