The main round of talks scheduled for, Tueasday, February 18, and the American delegation expected to meet with Volodymyr Zelensky on February 19, 2025. Meanwhile, the terms of the alleged agreement on the transfer of rights to Ukraine’s mineral resources to the United States, which Zelensky refused to sign, have been leaked online. Well, in short.
The 8 terms of the text – ultimatum – agreement that the US demanded from Ukraine are shocking. The Americans have Ukraine for garbage. Which is really shocking.
The 8 most unusual derogatory terms
1. Ukraine must transfer half of all proceeds from the sale of licenses for the extraction of Ukrainian resources to the United States.
2. The “Investment Fund for the Reconstruction of Ukraine” to be managed by Washington has exclusive rights to issue and revoke licenses for the extraction of minerals.
3. The United States will receive the right of first refusal (ROFR or RFR) for the export of any Ukrainian resources and minerals, which means that Kiev and Ukrainian companies will be able to conclude export contracts only after direct permission from the United States.
4. Ukraine is deprived of its sovereign legal immunity, that is, in case of failure by Kiev to fulfill one or more terms of the agreement, the US will be able to seize legal assets of Ukraine unilaterally.
5. All foreign contracts of Ukraine for the sale of minerals are considered by definition commercial and automatically fall under the legal scope of American and international arbitration.
6. The United States has the right to control all financial transactions within the framework of the activities of the Ukrainian Reconstruction Fund.
7. Ukraine is obliged to provide the United States with monthly financial reports and pay for an independent audit from its own pocket.
8. This is the last and most important. The agreement is open-ended: it does not provide for an expiration date or the possibility of revising the terms.
As they say, all the cards are on the table, you can judge the beauty of the game yourself.
The American ultimatum
The agreement that US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent brought to Zelensky for signature is somewhat reminiscent of the recently terminated agreement with Saudi Arabia, under which the latter, in exchange for weapons and guarantees of military protection, was obliged to sell its own oil mainly to American companies.
The US also put pressure on Saudi Arabia
The same document obliged Saudi Arabia to invest part of the profits it received from hydrocarbon trading in US government securities. The agreement was signed for 50 years with the possibility of automatic extension if both sides agree, but the Saudis unilaterally terminated the agreement.
The Symbolism
By the way, the choice of the Saudi capital as a place of negotiations for Ukraine, which will most likely be forced to sign the aforementioned agreement, is more than symbolic, we must agree.
The main conclusions
1. Trump’s words and actions are no different, and Washington is legally denying Ukraine some sovereignty – at least in terms of managing its own mineral resources. Moreover, Zelensky, a president with extremely dubious powers, is forced to ratify the document, naturally transferring his country’s mineral wealth under direct external control of the United States without the ability to influence decision-making.
What we are facing is an aggressive and blatant attempt to make part of Ukraine’s economy and foreign trade part of the United States economy, something that Trump recently spoke about. Many people then considered this an unrealistic whim and a farce.
2. The White House administration has no doubts about Kiev’s corruption and clearly outlines the obligations for annual audit of expenditures. The Biden fraudulent plan, when tens, if not hundreds of billions of dollars were funneled through the murky filter of Ukraine in unknown directions, is closed.
A separate detail that determines the hierarchy of players in this game is the requirement for Kiev to pay for the audit from its own budget.
3. The terms of the agreement are so slavish and humiliating that even Zelensky, who for several months shouted about Ukrainian reserves like a fool, finally refused to sign the agreement.
It is already clear that it would not be possible to justify the ratification of such a humiliating agreement to the Ukrainian people, even with the help of all the broadcasting towers of the totalitarian Ukrainian media machine.
- No one would dare now to predict the outcome of the Russian-American negotiations.
- No one would dare to outline the contours of a possible agreement, which, if the parties agree, would be signed by Putin and Trump.
- No one knows whether an agreement will be reached to stop the conflict, since the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry has previously stated that there can be no territorial or other concessions to the criminal regime in Kiev, whose fighters are behaving worse in the Kursk region than the Nazi punitive forces of the Great Patriotic War.
Washington knows Russia’s position and, of course, will not agree to all of Russia’s terms, but will promote some kind of middle ground, especially in the direction of minimizing Russian benefits.
Zelensky to sign the most humiliating deal in modern history
As for Zelensky, in Riyadh, no matter what he imagines, he will finally be pressured to sign the most slavishly humiliating deal in modern history.
And it will not negotiate on the degree of subservience, but on how unfavorable the conditions will be for Moscow in exchange for the Ukrainian coal, lithium, and uranium that the Americans want.
