Minerals deal won't convince Trump to resume aid to Ukraine, NBC News says
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Sun, 09 Mar 2025 15:20:07 +0200
US President Donald Trump has reportedly informed his aides that the minerals deal between Washington and Kyiv alone will not be sufficient to resume aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine as officials from both countries gear up for talks in Saudi Arabia this week.
Source NBC News, citing a Trump administration official and another US official Details Trump is pushing for a deal to be signed but also expects President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to show a shift in attitude toward peace talks, including a willingness to make concessions such as ceding territory to Russia, according to the officials.
Trump also wants Zelenskyy to take steps toward elections in Ukraine and possibly step down as the countrys leader.
The United States has no evidence that the pause in intelligence sharing directly impacted the Russian attacks, according to the US official and the administration official.
The two officials expressed optimism that arms, equipment and intelligence sharing could resume as early as next week, notably after Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine was ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible.
The officials noted that the US continues to provide Ukraine with defensive intelligence information that aids in repelling attacks but does not include coordinates for strikes on Russian targets.
Background On 28 February, Zelenskyy was supposed to sign a framework minerals deal during his visit to Washington.
On the same day, he left the White House ahead of schedule after a spat with Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
On 2 March, Zelenskyy told reporters that Ukraine was ready to sign a minerals agreement with the United States.
On 26 February, the Ukrainian leader said he had planned to ask Trump whether the United States would continue supporting Ukraine, what Kyiv could expect and about any negotiations between Washington and Moscow regarding Ukraine.
Zelenskyy stressed that security guarantees within the minerals deal with the US were a matter of principle for him and its success would hinge on his conversation with Trump on 28 February.
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