Fox News Interview
Ukraine Proposes New Agreement to U.S. Excluding Nuclear Power
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said on the 26th (local time) regarding the mineral agreement between the United States and Ukraine, "We hope to have full discussions next week and be able to sign it."
Secretary Besant stated in an interview with Fox News that day, "We have delivered the completed document for the economic partnership. Ukraine is currently reviewing it."
Earlier, President Donald Trump announced on the 20th that a rare earth mineral agreement with Ukraine would soon be signed. Regarding this, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the United States proposed a new agreement that far exceeds the mineral agreement discussed last month. President Zelensky described the U.S. new proposal as a "large-scale comprehensive agreement" and stated that it does not include any content about increasing U.S. involvement in Ukrainian nuclear power plants.
The Financial Times (FT) reported on the 21st that the U.S. wants Ukraine to agree to detailed provisions regarding ownership and control of the joint mineral investment fund and to expand the agreement to include other economic assets such as Ukrainian nuclear power plants under U.S. ownership.
Regarding sanctions against Russia, Secretary Besant said, "Everything is on the table."
He added, "Whether sanctions will be strengthened or weakened will depend on the next moves of the Russian leadership," and said, "I believe President Donald Trump would not hesitate to strengthen sanctions if he can gain an advantage in negotiations."
Earlier, on the 25th, Russia and Ukraine agreed to measures to implement a ceasefire in the Black Sea to stop attacks on energy facilities, mediated by the United States. Russia stated that the partial ceasefire agreement would only take effect after restrictions on its banks, food, and fertilizer exports are lifted.
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