Ukraine plans to send envoys to US for talks on minerals deal

Volodymyr Verbianyi and Olesia Safronova, Bloomberg News on Apr 8, 2025

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Ukrainian officials will visit the U.S. at the end of this week for talks on a deal governing post-war plans to exploit mineral deposits and rebuild infrastructure, according to people familiar with the matter.

The delegation will include deputy ministers from Ukraine’s economy and justice ministries but no higher-level politicians, as talks with President Donald Trump’s administration require technical consultations at this stage, two officials said, asking not to be named, as the negotiations aren’t public. Kyiv has also appointed an international law firm to advise on negotiations, they said.

The visit should take place from April 11-12, the people added. A spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry acknowledged the visit will take place and declined to provide further details. The Economy Ministry didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Kyiv is holding out for better terms in an expected deal with Washington that could oblige the war-ravaged nation to hand the U.S. half the future revenue from a significant portion of its economy. Trump and U.S. officials view the deal as compensation for the tens of billions of dollars in assistance provided to Ukraine by previous President Joe Biden since Russia’s full-scale invasion.

But Ukraine is refusing to recognize that aid as debt. Kyiv seeks a larger U.S. investment as part of any profit-sharing deal and is also concerned that the deal, and the privileges it would grant the U.S., may complicate its bid to join the European Union.

Kyiv is treading a fine line, refraining from any harsh public criticism of Washington or Trump while it struggles to maintain waning U.S. support for its ongoing fight against Russia’s invasion.

The upcoming visit of Ukraine’s delegation follows online talks between Washington and Kyiv in late March. Those talks came after the U.S. sent a draft of the agreement it wants Kyiv to sign.

Ukraine’s talks with the U.S. on an investment deal coincided with peace negotiations brokered by Trump’s team, held in Saudi Arabia, although that push appears to have lost some momentum. While Ukraine and Russia agreed to a temporary partial cease fire on energy infrastructure, air strikes continue, with Russia’s latest barrage killing at least 20 civilians in the city of Kryvyi Rih on Wednesday.

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(With assistance from Daryna Krasnolutska and Jeremy Hodges.)

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