The European Union is pushing for its own deal to share Ukraine’s mineral wealth that could undercut efforts by Donald Trump to secure mining rights as part of a peace deal.
Stéphane Séjourné, the bloc’s industry commissioner, quietly pushed Europe’s alternative deal on a visit to Kyiv to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
“Twenty-one of the 30 critical materials Europe needs can be provided by Ukraine in a win-win partnership,” the French eurocrat said after a meeting with Ukrainian officials.
He added: “The added value Europe offers is that we will never demand a deal that’s not mutually beneficial.”
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His comments came as Mr Trump claimed the US was “very close” to striking its own deal with Ukraine over access to its minerals.
The US president has been aggressively pushing the $500 billion (£395 billion) agreement as he seeks compensation for his country’s wartime support for Kyiv.
“I want them to give us something for all of the money that we put up,” Mr Trump said last week.
The deal could form a key part of bringing all sides together for talks to end the war.
Mr Séjourné’s comments are likely to be interpreted by Washington as an attempt to muscle in on the US president’s proposed deal.
Any attempts by Brussels to hijack the deal will likely further exacerbate transatlantic tensions over Mr Trump’s efforts to broker a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia.
On Tuesday, the European Commission sought to play down the comments made by Mr Séjourné, claiming there had been “no proposal” tabled at his meetings in Kyiv.
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A spokesman said he was referring to a memorandum of understanding between Brussels and Kyiv on critical materials signed in 2021.
“This is about cooperation with Ukraine, not competition with the US,” the spokesman added.
Kyiv has been resisting US demands to sign Washington’s offer for a rare earths deal because it doesn’t offer cast-iron guarantees of future security support.
A draft version of the agreement circulated proposed a reconstruction fund in which the US “maintains 100 per cent financial interest”, while Ukraine would provide half of the fund through its minerals revenues up to $500 billion.
“The government of the United States of America intends to provide a long-term financial commitment to the development of a stable and economically prosperous Ukraine,” the draft adds.
Ukrainian officials have argued the wording doesn’t constitute robust guarantees of support, such as weapons deliveries or sanctions against Russia if Vladimir Putin invades again.
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Critics of Washington’s proposals have accused Mr Trump of trying to extort Ukraine and strong-arm Kyiv into signing the deal.
The proposed US-Ukraine minerals deal is likely to offer one of the clearest insights in how the war-torn country could be carved up as part of any peace settlement.
Many of Ukraine’s mineral deposits are in territory currently occupied by Russian forces.
On Monday, Putin said he would be open to granting the US access to rare earths in both Russia and occupied Ukraine.
The Russian president said his country “undoubtedly have, I want to emphasise, significantly more resources of this kind than Ukraine”.
“As for the new territories, it’s the same. We are ready to attract foreign partners to the so-called new, to our historical territories, which have returned to the Russian Federation,” he added.
Mr Trump is likely to be buoyed by his Russian counterpart’s comments because of fears China could have demanded access to Russia’s rare earths as a price for its wartime support.
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Moscow and Beijing have become increasingly close allies and have cemented that by signing a “no limits” alliance pact.
In his first term in the White House, Mr Trump sought to restrict China’s access to advanced technology such as semiconductors and electric vehicles.
Many rare earths and minerals beneath Ukraine and Russia provide core materials for the production of these technologies.
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