Zelenskyy says he may be forced to sign mineral agreement with U.S. in exchange for continued aid

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy answers media questions during his press conference, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday said he may be forced to sign an economic agreement with the United States that would ensure continued aid for Ukraine in return for the U.S. making a profit from minerals in the country.

“If your conditions are, ‘We will not give you aid if you do not sign an agreement,’ then it is clear,” Zelenskyy said during a news conference at a forum of government officials in Kyiv marking the three-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

“If we are forced and we cannot do without it, then we should probably go for it … I just want a dialogue with President (Donald) Trump."

The Trump administration has pressured Zelenskyy to sign a deal allowing the U.S. access to Ukrainian rare earth minerals as a form of compensation for the assistance the U.S has provided to Kyiv as it defends against Russia’s invasion.

Zelenskyy earlier declined to sign off on an initial U.S. offer, arguing it did not provide Ukraine with the security guarantees it needs to deter Russian attacks.

On Sunday, Zelenskyy said he was open to brokering a deal that would let the U.S. profit from his country’s minerals, but the $500 billion sum initially proposed by the Trump administration wasn’t acceptable.

“I am not signing something that will be paid off by 10 generations of Ukrainians,” he said.

Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, Andrii Yermak, left the Kyiv forum early on Sunday along with Economic Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko for what Yermak said were talks with U.S. officials on a potential deal.

He said Ukraine’s mineral resources represent “a very important element that can work in the general structure of security guarantees — military guarantees and others.”

Zelenskyy says he’d give up presidency for NATO membership

In response to a pointed question from a reporter on whether he would give up his presidency for peace in Ukraine, Zelenskyy said he would do so if it achieved a durable end to the fighting under the security umbrella of the NATO military alliance.

“If to achieve peace, you really need me to give up my post, I’m ready,” he said. “I can trade it for NATO.”

His comment appeared to be aimed at recent suggestions by Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin that elections should be held in Ukraine despite Ukrainian legislation prohibiting them during martial law.

Ukraine fears Trump’s policy shift toward Putin

Trump’s engagement with Russian officials and his agreement to reopen diplomatic ties and economic cooperation with Moscow in recent weeks has marked a dramatic about-face in U.S. policy that has rattled leaders in Ukraine and across Europe.

Zelenskyy has expressed fears that Trump pushing a quick resolution would result in Ukraine losing territory and being left vulnerable to future Russian aggression, though U.S. officials have asserted that the Ukrainian leader would be involved if and when peace talks actually start.

Trump, however, prompted alarm and anger in Ukraine this week when he suggested that Kyiv had started the war, and that Zelenskyy was acting as a “dictator” by not holding elections.

Russia’s deputy foreign minister on Saturday said preparations were underway for a meeting between Trump and Putin, a further sign that the Russian leader’s isolation, at least for the Trump administration, was beginning to thaw.

European leaders prepare for talks with Zelenskyy and Trump

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and other top European Union officials are set to arrive in Kyiv on Monday for talks with Ukraine’s government. European leaders have scrambled in recent days to devise a response to the Trump administration’s U.S. policy changes, and come up with a mechanism for continuing to support Kyiv if aid from Washington comes to an end.

Zelenskyy on Sunday said he would propose a trip to a European capital in the next week or two to speak with EU leaders on security guarantees for Ukraine.

The U.K. on Sunday said it would announce new sanctions on Russia Monday, its biggest package since the early days of the war. Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the measures would be aimed at “eroding (Russia’s) military machine and reducing revenues fueling the fires of destruction in Ukraine.”

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron will make tag-team visits to Washington this week as Europe attempts to persuade Trump not to abandon Ukraine in pursuit of a peace deal.

Starmer told a Labour Party gathering in Scotland on Sunday: “There can be no discussion about Ukraine without Ukraine, and the people of Ukraine must have a long-term secure future.”

Russia launches record drone strikes on eve of anniversary

Earlier on Sunday, Zelenskyy said Russia had launched 267 strike drones into Ukraine overnight, more than in any other single attack of the war.

Ukraine’s air force said 138 drones had been shot down over 13 Ukrainian regions, with 119 more lost en route to their targets.

Three ballistic missiles had also been fired, the air force said. One person was killed in the city of Kryvyi Rih, according to the city military administration.

Reacting to the latest Russian attacks, Andrii Sybiha‎, Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, said they demonstrated that “avoiding calling Russia an aggressor does not change the fact that it is one.”

“No one should trust Putin’s words. Look at his actions instead,” Sybiha‎ said in a statement on social media.

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JJustin Spike And Illia Novikov, The Associated Press