{"id":127499,"date":"2025-02-22T20:11:45","date_gmt":"2025-02-22T20:11:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/ukraine-russia-war-latest-zelensky-not-ready-to-sign-us-minerals-deal-and-demands-europe-attends-peace-talks-the-independent\/"},"modified":"2025-02-22T20:11:45","modified_gmt":"2025-02-22T20:11:45","slug":"ukraine-russia-war-latest-zelensky-not-ready-to-sign-us-minerals-deal-and-demands-europe-attends-peace-talks-the-independent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/ukraine-russia-war-latest-zelensky-not-ready-to-sign-us-minerals-deal-and-demands-europe-attends-peace-talks-the-independent\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine-Russia war latest: Zelensky \u2018not ready\u2019 to sign US minerals deal and demands Europe attends peace talks – The Independent"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Comes after Trump claims he is close to a deal on issue of rare earth minerals
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<\/a>Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky<\/a> is not ready to sign a rare earth minerals deal<\/a> with the US<\/a> despite Donald Trump<\/a> claiming an agreement was close<\/a>, a Ukrainian source has said.
The US<\/a> president has demanded preferential access to around $500bn of Ukraine\u2019s rare earth minerals<\/a> as repayment for his country\u2019s <\/a>military support, which has been provided to Kyiv<\/a> by his predecessor Joe Biden<\/a> over the last three years.
On Friday, Trump<\/a> said Washington<\/a> and Kyiv<\/a> were close to a deal after days of mudslinging and threats<\/a> in which he labelled Zelensky a \u201cdictator\u201d after Kyiv<\/a> rejected the proposal as \u201cunserious\u201d.
\u201cThere are no American obligations in the agreement regarding guarantees or investments, everything about them is very vague, and they want to extract $500 billion from us<\/a>,\u201d the source said on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Zelensky demanded that Europe<\/a> should be given a seat at any negotiating table with Russia<\/a> after a \u201cproductive\u201d talk with British prime minister Keir Starmer<\/a>.
The US<\/a> has so far only sat down with Russia<\/a> in Riyadh<\/a>, Saudi Arabia<\/a>, for talks. Trump<\/a> has dismissed the idea of Kyiv<\/a> joining peace talks, claiming Zelensky \u201cheld no cards\u201d and would only be an obstacle to peace.
Keir Starmer reiterated that the UK was “ready to play a role” in future security guarantees over the Ukraine war in a call with the President of Finland on Saturday, Number 10 said.
A Downing Street spokesperson said: “The prime minister spoke to the president of Finland Alexander Stubb this afternoon.
“The prime minister began by reiterating the need to secure enduring peace for Ukraine and bring an end to Russia’s illegal war.
“The leaders agreed the need for Europe to step up support to achieve this, and the prime minister said the UK is ready to play a role in future security guarantees.
“They agreed to stay in close contact.”
An economic partnership between Ukraine and the US would benefit both countries, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said.
Writing in an opinion piece for the Financial Times<\/em> on Saturday, Bessent said the US has proposed that revenue received by Ukraine’s government from natural resources, infrastructure and other assets would be allocated to a fund focused on the long-term reconstruction and development of Ukraine, with the US having economic and governance rights in those future investments.
US negotiators pressing Kyiv for access to Ukraine’s critical minerals have raised the possibility of cutting the country’s access to Elon Musk’s vital Starlink satellite internet system, three sources familiar with the matter have said.
Ukraine’s continued access to SpaceX-owned Starlink was brought up in discussions between US and Ukrainian officials after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky turned down an initial proposal from US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the sources told Reuters.
Starlink provides crucial internet connectivity to war-torn Ukraine and its military.
The issue was raised again on Thursday during meetings between Keith Kellogg, the US special Ukraine envoy, and Zelensky, said one of the sources, who was briefed on the talks.
During the meeting, Ukraine was told it faced imminent shutoff of the service if it did not reach a deal on critical minerals, said the source, who requested anonymity to discuss closed negotiations.
“Ukraine runs on Starlink. They consider it their North Star,” said the source. “Losing Starlink … would be a massive blow.”
Poland has said it has been paying for Ukraine’s Starlink subscription and will continue to do so despite sources saying the US could consider cutting Ukraine’s access to the satellite internet system.
US negotiators pressing Kyiv for access to Ukraine’s critical minerals have raised the possibility of cutting the country’s access to Elon Musk’s vital Starlink satellite internet system, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Starlink provides crucial internet connectivity to the war-torn country and its military.
“We pay and will continue to pay a subscription fee for satellite internet for Ukraine,” Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said in a post on Musk-owned social media platform X today.
“I cannot imagine that someone could decide to terminate a business contract for a commercial service to which Poland is a party,” added Gawkowski, who is also Poland’s digital affairs minister.
Hungary will be the one to decide whether Ukraine is able to achieve its hopes of joining the European Union in the future, Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban said today in an escalation of his adversarial posture toward Hungary’s war-ravaged neighbour.
Speaking at an annual State of the Nation address in Budapest to a closed circle of party members and supporters, Orban described Ukraine as a buffer zone between Russia and NATO countries, and predicted that, following a cessation of Moscow’s war, it would resume that role despite its ambitions to join the Western military alliance.
He added that whether Ukraine can one day join the 27-member EU “will be decided by the Hungarians”.
“Against the will of Hungary and the Hungarians, Ukraine will never be a member of the European Union,” Orban said. “Ukraine’s accession would destroy Hungarian farmers, and not only them, but the entire Hungarian national economy.”
Unanimity is required among leaders of all EU countries for accepting new members.
Orban, considered the Kremlin’s closest partner among EU leaders, has been the bloc’s primary impediment in its efforts to assist Ukraine in the country’s struggle to defend against Russia’s full-scale invasion. He has frequently criticized, and threatened to veto, EU sanctions against Russia over its aggression, but has ultimately always voted for them.
While Hungary, an EU and NATO member, has taken in Ukrainian refugees fleeing the conflict, it has also stood in the way of EU financial assistance to Kyiv and pushed for deeper economic and energy cooperation with Moscow despite the war.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha on Friday that US President Donald Trump remains committed to ending the conflict in Ukraine, a spokesperson for Rubio said today.
Russian forces have captured the village of Novolyubivka in Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk region, the Kremlin claimed.
It comes after Putin\u2019s troops seized the three villages of Nadiivka, Novosilka and Novoocheretuvate, according to Russia\u2019s defence ministry.
Moscow has previously been premature in claiming the capture of Ukrainian towns and villages.
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