Trump Eyes Ukraine Deal Exchanging Rare Earths for Aid
Posted on 02/08/2025 4:08:01 AM PST by Timber Rattler
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy pored over a once-classified map of vast deposits of rare earths and other critical minerals during an interview with Reuters on Friday, part of a push to appeal to Donald Trump's penchant for a deal.
The U.S. president, whose administration is pressing for a rapid end to Ukraine's war with Russia, said on Monday he wanted Ukraine to supply the U.S. with rare earths and other minerals in return for financially supporting its war effort.
"If we are talking about a deal, then let's do a deal, we are only for it," Zelenskiy said, emphasising Ukraine's need for security guarantees from its allies as part of any settlement.
Ukraine floated the idea of opening its critical minerals to investment by allies last autumn, as it presented a "victory plan" that sought to put it in the strongest position for talks and force Moscow to the table. Zelenskiy said less than 20% of Ukraine's mineral resources, including about half its rare earth deposits, were under Russian occupation.
Rare earths are important in the manufacture of high-performance magnets, electric motors and consumer electronics; Zelenskiy said Moscow could open those resources to its allies North Korea and Iran, both sworn U.S. enemies. "We need to stop Putin and protect what we have - a very rich Dnipro region, central Ukraine," he said.
(snip)
Trump said on Friday that he expected to talk to Zelenskiy next week. Zelenskiy said his own priority would be raising Ukraine's need for security guarantees as part of any deal, to prevent Russia launching another invasion in the future.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Trump Eyes Ukraine Deal Exchanging Rare Earths for Aid
From the article: " 'If we are talking about a deal, then let's do a deal, we are only for it,' Zelenskiy said, emphasising Ukraine's need for security guarantees from its allies as part of any settlement."
A business deal doesn't involve "security guarantees." A military alliance does.
A deal such as this is not between two men. These deals are usually self-enforcing. For example, I think it was Bush II who needed votes in Pennsylvania. He enacted a steel tariff which played well there. The US was taken to an international court. The other side won, and this allowed all the trading partners on that side to enact tariffs until Bush II dropped the US tariff. The idea of the Pacific Partnership was to neuter US policy makers and force the US to cede its sovereignty to international courts. I think the US has extracted itself from many of those traps and this is why Trump has a free hand now. But whatever deal Trump makes will be self-enforcing.
Buzz off, squirt.
Then why is Trump meeting with him to negotiate the deal?
USAID has pushed nearly half a billion dollars ($472.6m) through a secretive US government financed NGO, "Internews Network" (IN), which has “worked with” 4,291 media outlets, producing in one year 4,799 hours of broadcasts reaching up to 778 million people and "training” over…— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 8, 2025
USAID has pushed nearly half a billion dollars ($472.6m) through a secretive US government financed NGO, "Internews Network" (IN), which has “worked with” 4,291 media outlets, producing in one year 4,799 hours of broadcasts reaching up to 778 million people and "training” over 9000 journalists (2023 figures). IN has also supported social media censorship initiatives.
The operation claims “offices” in over 30 countries, including main offices in US, London, Paris and regional HQs in Kiev, Bangkok and Nairobi. It is headed up by Jeanne Bourgault, who pays herself $451k a year. Bourgault worked out of the US embassy in Moscow during the early 1990s, where she was in charge of a $250m budget, and in other revolts or conflicts at critical times, before formally rotating out of six years at USAID to IN.
Bourgault’s IN bio and those of its other key people and board members have been recently scrubbed from its website but remain accessible at http://archive.org. Records show the board being co-chaired by Democrat securocrat Richard J. Kessler and Simone Otus Coxe, wife of NVIDIA billionaire Trench Coxe, both major Democratic donors. In 2023, supported by Hillary Clinton, Bourgault launched a $10m IN fund at the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI). The IN page showing a picture of Bourgault at the CGI has also been deleted.
IN has at least six captive subsidiaries under unrelated names including one based out of the Cayman Islands. Since 2008, when electronic records begin, more than 95% of IN's budget has been supplied by the US government (thread follows)
Amazing how that "Art of the Deal" can work out!
And your point is...? USAID now longer exists, for all intents and purposes. So your post is moot.
The simple point is everything you have printed about the Ukraine has been a product of propaganda, including the death numbers. More than one million innocent Ukrainians have been killed as you cheered them on from the safety of the sidelines. Just another Neocon war with a very predictable outcome.
As to President Trump, he also showed interest in Greenland, in the Panama Canal, or many, many other things like exposing the massive Obama-Biden excesses in USAID and that treason Obama called "fundamental change."
The picture you posted as if current was from Paris some time back now, and, as we recall, the small man in that photo campaigned against President Trump for Harris-Walz.
So what meeting? When? Where? And with which in attendance?
Why didn’t he propose this three years ago when we started giving him all these “game changer” weapons. He only mentions it now that Trump already did. Shyster!
And they were killed how and by whom?
He likes to practice the "Art of the Deal," right?
And it seems he's already made a deal with Netanyahu to remove the Palestinians from Gaza and rebuild the strip into a Mediterranean resort area, owned by the U.S.?
Trump proposes U.S. control of Gaza in move that would permanently displace Palestinians
You OK with that, Cochise?
Why on earth would anyone on this Forum exchange posts with a #NeverTrump like you? Go back to that gay cubbyhole you call home.
Well, you just did.
Expect more #NeverTrump
The target of the USAID purge, was George Soros.
The USAID slush fund was how he financed his global Left-wing influence machine.
It’s how he bought politicians, MSM, newspapers, radio shows, judges, prosecutors, etc.
Elon and Trump just cut off the head of the snake. pic.twitter.com/pNlLzAEsJ2— Clandestine (@WarClandestine) February 7, 2025
Your posts add nothing to the discussion.
As usual.
I asked specficially about your assertion: "So what meeting? When? Where? And with which in attendance?"
Your response. More assertions. Seems you like assertions, and are less found of citations supporting your assertions. Let's stick to some "Zelenskiy and mineral rights" meeting with President Trump.
"...what meeting? When? Where? And with which in attendance?"
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