With Volodymyr Zelenskyy resisting Donald Trump’s bid for Ukraine’s critical rare earth minerals, the Kremlin is making efforts to persuade the United States president that Russia can offer a more advantageous deal. This geopolitical maneuvering highlights the ongoing tension and strategic interests in the region.
On Monday evening, Russian leader Vladimir Putin communicated through state media that Russia is "ready to work with our partners, including the Americans" to gain access to mineral reserves, even in regions of Russian-occupied Ukraine. He proposed that Russia could resume selling aluminum to the U.S., offering to supply “about 2 million tons to the American market” as part of the deal.
The offer from Moscow comes at a time when the Trump administration seeks preferential access to billions of dollars' worth of Ukraine’s critical minerals. This move is seen as a form of compensation for previously supplied aid, though the U.S. has yet to offer clear security guarantees or future funding prospects in return.
During a televised interview following a meeting on the development of the rare earth metals industry, Putin emphasized that Ukraine’s potential mineral deal with the U.S. "does not concern us." He claimed that Moscow has more to offer Trump than Kyiv does, highlighting that Russia possesses "an order of magnitude more resources of this kind than Ukraine."
Putin specifically mentioned mineral reserves located in Russia's north, the Caucasus, and the far east, as well as in the Donbas region of Ukraine, currently occupied by Russian forces. He expressed readiness to collaborate with foreign partners, including the Americans, in these "new historical territories" that Russia has claimed.
To make the offer more appealing, Putin suggested that Russia would be willing to work with the U.S. on aluminum production. He noted that collaboration with Moscow would allow American companies to "make good money," while ensuring that aluminum enters the domestic market at competitive prices.
The Trump administration has committed to ending the Russia-Ukraine war as swiftly as possible, aligning with some of the Kremlin’s narratives about Kyiv's role in provoking Moscow. Meanwhile, on Monday, the European Union offered its own minerals deal to Ukraine. European Commissioner for Industrial Strategy Stéphane Séjourné, during a visit to Kyiv, emphasized that Europe would never demand a deal that isn’t mutually beneficial, highlighting a different approach to international partnerships.
