Trump Suggests Ukraine May Fall Under Russian Control and Seeks Resource Deal for Aid
Trump has indicated that Ukraine may eventually fall under Russian control and is urging the country to share its natural resources in return for US assistance.
US President Donald Trump has suggested that Ukraine may fall under Russian control "someday," while calling for the war-torn country to share its natural resources in exchange for US assistance.
In an interview with Fox News on Monday, Trump, whose potential return to power casts doubt on billions of dollars in future US aid to Ukraine, stated that he has told Kyiv he wanted "$500 billion worth of rare earth."
He claimed that Ukrainian officials had "essentially agreed" to the proposal. "Ukraine has tremendously valuable land in terms of rare earth, in terms of oil and gas, in terms of other things," Trump noted. "I want to have our money secured, because we're spending hundreds of billions of dollars."
Trump further asserted, "They may make a deal, they may not make a deal. They may be Russian someday, or they may not be Russian someday. But we are going to have all this money in there and I say I want it back."
He has previously emphasized the need for a quick end to the conflict but has been short on public ideas. Earlier, Trump floated the idea of meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky this week.
His envoy to Ukraine and Russia, ret. Gen. Keith Kellogg, announced that he will discuss their vision for peace in Ukraine with allies at the Munich Security Conference, scheduled for February 14-16. Kellogg is then expected to visit Kyiv four days later for his first long-anticipated trip there, according to Ukrainian state media.
