The Kremlin delivers a warning to U.S. president over military aid proposal.
A senior Russian official slammed United States President Donald Trump’s proposal that he could militarily aid Ukraine in exchange for access to its rare earth resources.
« If we call things as they are, this is a proposal to buy help — in other words, not to give it unconditionally, or for some other reasons, but specifically to provide it on a commercial basis, » Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters Tuesday.
« It would be better of course for the assistance to not be provided at all, as that would contribute to the end of this conflict, » he added, about a war that was instigated by Russia.
Trump announced Monday that he was “looking to do a deal with Ukraine” in which the U.S. would provide military aid for the war against Russian President Vladimir Putin in exchange for Ukraine’s rare earths.
« We’re investing hundreds of billions of dollars. They have great rare earths, and I want security of the rare earths, » he said in Washington, adding that Ukraine is « willing to do it. »
Ukraine has strategic reserves of titanium, lithium, graphite and uranium, which is crucial for its future economic stability and potentially part of the calculus in balancing immediate aid with long-term sovereignty over its resources. Some of the rare earths are in areas currently under occupation by Russia, which has been waging war on Ukraine since 2014 and launched a full-scale invasion in 2022.
Ukraine has not yet commented on Trump’s proposal, but sharing resources with allies is part of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s « victory plan » for the war against Russia.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz criticized Trump’s suggestion, calling it « very egotistic, very self-centered,” and argued that Ukraine would need its natural resources to finance postwar rebuilding.
