Mr Viral
Donald Trump
U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is trying to back out of a minerals deal with the United States and warned of serious consequences if the agreement is abandoned.
“He’s trying to back out of the rare earth deal and if he does that he’s got some problems, big, big problems,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, according to Reuters.
Trump added that Zelensky “wants [Ukraine] to be a member of NATO, but he’s never going to be a member of NATO. He understands that.”
Publicly, Trump has only referred to rare earth metals when discussing the deal. However, media reports last week indicated that he has been pushing for an agreement that would give Washington vast control over Kyiv’s critical energy and mineral resources via a joint investment fund.
On Friday, Zelensky said that Ukraine would not accept any minerals deal that threatens its future accession to the European Union.
During the same exchange with reporters, Trump addressed a possible ceasefire in Ukraine, saying there is a “psychological deadline” for Moscow to reach an agreement. When asked whether Russia faces a specific deadline to strike a deal, he responded, “If I think they’re tapping us along, I will not be happy about it.” For now, however, he said he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin “wants to make a deal.”
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