Ukraine

NBC - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will meet with President Donald Trump today at the White House for the first time since the U.S. began direct negotiations with Russia to secure an agreement that would end the yearslong war in Ukraine.

Trump has signaled that the two counties have made an agreement, which would be signed today, granting the U.S. significant ownership of Ukraine’s rare earth minerals. The deal would be a form of repayment for the nearly $66 billion in military assistance the U.S. has provided Ukraine since Russia invaded in February 2022, creating an “economic partnership” between the two nations.

Ukraine has some of the world’s largest reserves of titanium and iron ore, but many of the minerals are in areas now controlled by Russian troops. Russia has proposed a similar deal that would give the U.S. ownership of rare earth minerals in Russian-controlled Ukrainian territory, an idea that both Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have signaled interest in.

In September, Zelenskyy presented Trump with a “Victory Plan” to help end the war. The two leaders last met in December in Paris. But this month, U.S. officials initiated peace talks with Russian negotiators in Saudi Arabia, and a war of words between Trump and Zelenskyy ensued. This week, however, Trump struck a more conciliatory tone about today's meeting.   More

NPR - Zelenskyy says today’s deal is a framework rather than a final agreement. The agreement established a fund to help Ukraine recover if the war ends and would be managed by both countries... Zelenskyy rejected earlier drafts of the raw materials agreements as they would have used the revenue to pay back aid Ukraine already received from the U.S. The current version has more favorable terms for Ukraine, and the revenue seems to be going toward future U.S. investment in the country.