April 16, 2025
Bloomberg
Alex Stezhensky
The United States has softened its demands regarding repayment for aid to Ukraine during talks over a bilateral economic agreement on mineral extraction, Bloomberg reported on April 16, citing sources.
According to the outlet, after a round of negotiations in Washington last week, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump lowered its valuation of the aid Washington has provided to Kyiv since Russia’s full-scale invasion — from $300 billion to about $100 billion. That figure brings it closer to Ukraine’s own estimate, which pegs U.S. aid at just over $90 billion.
A U.S. Treasury Department spokesperson said the technical talks were very productive. The department added that it looks forward to concluding the negotiations soon.
Asked about the state of the talks, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Ukraine submitted a counterproposal over the weekend and that discussions are still ongoing.
“We’re very, very close. A deal could be signed as soon as this week,” he said.
One person familiar with the talks, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Bloomberg that negotiations between technical teams on April 11 and 12 were constructive. However, they added that the U.S. still sees the agreement as a potential vehicle to recoup its wartime spending in Ukraine through profits generated by a fund whose size remains unspecified in the latest draft.
Sources told the agency that the Trump administration remains reluctant to commit to future investments in the fund — a key priority for Kyiv in any such agreement — and has postponed discussion of the issue.
Instead, White House officials continue to insist that U.S. wartime spending in Ukraine be treated as Washington’s contribution to the fund.
Ukrainian negotiators, however, are doing everything they can to persuade their American counterparts to abandon that approach.
According to Bloomberg, last week’s negotiations in Washington focused primarily on the details of the potential agreement and did not involve any high-ranking government officials.
One participant said legal teams would continue working remotely this week to finalize the draft text as quickly as possible.
At the next online meeting later this week, one of Kyiv’s tasks will be to present detailed information about specific projects that could be launched under the deal.
The draft profit-sharing agreement presented by the U.S. side includes a number of concessions from Kyiv — such as granting the U.S. the right to a share of potential revenue from Ukrainian investments in high-value assets, including oil, gas, rare earth minerals, and seaports.
The partnership would give the U.S. priority rights to profit that would be funneled into a special reconstruction investment fund controlled by Washington. Kyiv is seeking more favorable terms and refuses to recognize past U.S. assistance as debt.
On March 31, it was reported that Ukraine and the United States had, for the first time, held detailed discussions on a draft agreement on mineral extraction proposed by the American side.
That same day, U.S. President Donald Trump claimed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy intended to walk away from the minerals deal, warning that doing so would create “serious problems.”
Zelenskyy responded by stating that Ukraine would not recognize past U.S. military assistance as debt.
On April 2, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Bloomberg that a Ukrainian delegation would travel to the U.S. by the end of the week or early the next to continue talks on the minerals deal. He said Ukraine had “hired a lawyer,” and that the U.S. side considered the deal “ready.”
On April 4, Zelenskyy said Ukraine would be represented in the talks by a legal firm, and that the selection process was underway.
On April 7, Ukraine’s Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko told the Associated Press that a Ukrainian delegation would visit Washington that week for technical talks on the new version of the mineral resources deal.
On April 8, Deputy Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Ukraine had finalized its position on the agreement with the U.S. and developed a vision for the document’s text.
On April 9, Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers allocated 113 million hryvnias for consulting services to support the preparation of the deal. The Economy Ministry was allocated 59 million hryvnias and the Justice Ministry 54 million.
On April 12, Reuters, citing a knowledgeable source, reported that the U.S. and Ukrainian delegations had held tense negotiations in Washington over the mineral extraction deal — but that prospects for a breakthrough remained slim due to the “antagonistic” atmosphere of the talks.