American support for Ukraine has a price tag: $500B worth of mineral riches, said U.S. President Donald Trump.
In the second part of an interview with Fox News that aired late Monday, the Republican said the U.S. should get a slice of Ukraine’s vast natural resources as compensation for the hundreds of billions it has spent on helping Kyiv resist Russia's full-scale invasion.
“I told them [Ukraine] that I want the equivalent like $500B worth of rare earth. And they've essentially agreed to do that so at least we don’t feel stupid,” Trump said.
“Otherwise, we're stupid. I said to them we have to — 'we have to get something. We can’t continue to pay this money,'” he added.
Ukraine holds huge deposits of critical elements and minerals, from lithium to titanium, which are vital to manufacturing modern technologies. It also has vast coal reserves, as well as oil, gas and uranium, but much of this is in territories under Russian control.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been dangling allowing the U.S. to develop his country's natural resources as a tactic to keep Trump on side. The idea was also part of Ukraine’s “victory plan,” a list of economic and security policies aimed at securing a just peace with Russia, which Zelenskyy presented to the country's allies last year.
“The Americans helped the most, and therefore the Americans should earn the most,” Zelenskyy said Friday in an interview with Reuters.
by Seb Starcevic, Politico | Read more:
Image: RFE/RL
[ed. Brilliant move on Zelenskyy's part. Take a look at the chart below (via RFE/RL and Naked Capitalism). See Ukraine listed there anywhere? It's because they don't have much in the way of rare earth minerals, and what they do have are either hard to mine and process, or currently under Russian control. So sure US, bring in your mining companies and technology and go to town. We'd love the help developing our resources. By the way, do you know what these types of 'negotiations' are called? Pizzo! (protection money paid to the Mafia often in the form of a forced transfer of money resulting from extortion - Wikipedia): ]
It’s amusing to see a US influence operator, RFL/RL, trying to preserve an image of accuracy while carrying official water. Here, the case in point is Trump’s promotion of the idea that the US could continue to arm Ukraine if Ukraine mortgaged its future by paying the US via ownership or other concessions of its rare earths deposits, or as Trump put it, “rare earth” and one presumes other strategic materials.
Here we have Trump again proving himself to be the truest follower of the Kamala Harris exhortation, “What can be, unburdened by what has been.” Here the “what has been” includes what is. In this case, it’s that Ukraine has bupkis in the way of rare earths. Worse, the media has been simply parroting what Trump said as if Ukraine really had these goodies, as opposed to engaging in some throat clearing. So it sure looks like Trump is prepared to send Ukraine more arms in return for an empty bag. (...)
Many commentators have tried to burnish the Trump remarks by saying he likely meant lithium (which is not a rare earth) and other strategic minerals. Wellie, as various commentators have already pointed out, Ukraine has four major lithium deposits, two of which are under Russia’s control. The severity of gnashing of teeth when Russia recently captured the second of these two areas suggests that it represents the largest supply. (...)
And any Ukraine mortgaging of these assets is subject to prior claims, such as nearly 30% of the farmland being owned by oligarchs and/or the likes of BlackRock and Vanguard. (...)
But the fact that Trump floated this idea does not mean he is serious. It may simply be an effort to create another option, that the US still has a way to continue to supply weapons to Ukraine that Trump can make look palatable to the American public.
~ Even US Messaging Outlet RFE/RL Having Trouble Prettying Up Trump Planning to Buy Ukraine Rare Earths Empty Bag (Naked Capitalism).
In the second part of an interview with Fox News that aired late Monday, the Republican said the U.S. should get a slice of Ukraine’s vast natural resources as compensation for the hundreds of billions it has spent on helping Kyiv resist Russia's full-scale invasion.
“I told them [Ukraine] that I want the equivalent like $500B worth of rare earth. And they've essentially agreed to do that so at least we don’t feel stupid,” Trump said.
“Otherwise, we're stupid. I said to them we have to — 'we have to get something. We can’t continue to pay this money,'” he added.
Ukraine holds huge deposits of critical elements and minerals, from lithium to titanium, which are vital to manufacturing modern technologies. It also has vast coal reserves, as well as oil, gas and uranium, but much of this is in territories under Russian control.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been dangling allowing the U.S. to develop his country's natural resources as a tactic to keep Trump on side. The idea was also part of Ukraine’s “victory plan,” a list of economic and security policies aimed at securing a just peace with Russia, which Zelenskyy presented to the country's allies last year.
“The Americans helped the most, and therefore the Americans should earn the most,” Zelenskyy said Friday in an interview with Reuters.
by Seb Starcevic, Politico | Read more:
Image: RFE/RL
[ed. Brilliant move on Zelenskyy's part. Take a look at the chart below (via RFE/RL and Naked Capitalism). See Ukraine listed there anywhere? It's because they don't have much in the way of rare earth minerals, and what they do have are either hard to mine and process, or currently under Russian control. So sure US, bring in your mining companies and technology and go to town. We'd love the help developing our resources. By the way, do you know what these types of 'negotiations' are called? Pizzo! (protection money paid to the Mafia often in the form of a forced transfer of money resulting from extortion - Wikipedia): ]
It’s amusing to see a US influence operator, RFL/RL, trying to preserve an image of accuracy while carrying official water. Here, the case in point is Trump’s promotion of the idea that the US could continue to arm Ukraine if Ukraine mortgaged its future by paying the US via ownership or other concessions of its rare earths deposits, or as Trump put it, “rare earth” and one presumes other strategic materials.
Here we have Trump again proving himself to be the truest follower of the Kamala Harris exhortation, “What can be, unburdened by what has been.” Here the “what has been” includes what is. In this case, it’s that Ukraine has bupkis in the way of rare earths. Worse, the media has been simply parroting what Trump said as if Ukraine really had these goodies, as opposed to engaging in some throat clearing. So it sure looks like Trump is prepared to send Ukraine more arms in return for an empty bag. (...)
Many commentators have tried to burnish the Trump remarks by saying he likely meant lithium (which is not a rare earth) and other strategic minerals. Wellie, as various commentators have already pointed out, Ukraine has four major lithium deposits, two of which are under Russia’s control. The severity of gnashing of teeth when Russia recently captured the second of these two areas suggests that it represents the largest supply. (...)
And any Ukraine mortgaging of these assets is subject to prior claims, such as nearly 30% of the farmland being owned by oligarchs and/or the likes of BlackRock and Vanguard. (...)
But the fact that Trump floated this idea does not mean he is serious. It may simply be an effort to create another option, that the US still has a way to continue to supply weapons to Ukraine that Trump can make look palatable to the American public.
~ Even US Messaging Outlet RFE/RL Having Trouble Prettying Up Trump Planning to Buy Ukraine Rare Earths Empty Bag (Naked Capitalism).
