United States Expects Mineral Deal With Ukraine To Be Signed This Week

Trump Presidential Special Envoy Steve Witkoff. (Twitter/SteveWitkoff)

JAKARTA - United States President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and Finance Minister Scott Bessent said on Sunday the agreement on Ukrainian minerals was expected to be agreed upon and signed this week.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky previously rejected a claim of US$500 billion in the form of Washington's requested mineral wealth, in compensation for wartime aid, saying the US had not provided close support to that amount.

President Zelensky faltered "in his commitment to it a week ago," Witkoff said in a CNN interview "State of the Union", referring to the Ukrainian leader's refusal to an initial US proposal.

"The president (Trump) sent a message to him. He is no longer shaky," he continued.

President Zelensky realized "we've done so much (for Ukraine) and I think you'll see it (the agreement) signed this week," continued Witkoff.

"The deal will be signed," Minister of Finance Bessent said in an interview at Fox News on Sunday, adding he "hopes" it will happen this week.

Separately, Ukraine's Presidential Chief of Staff said on Sunday that the next round of negotiations with the United States regarding the deal would continue.

It is known that President Trump has pushed for an agreement to end the war in Ukraine and held separate calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskiy earlier this month.

Last week, high-level delegates from the United States and Russia met in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in talks that did not involve Ukraine.

President Trump urged the presidents of Russia and Ukraine to work together in ending the war, which began when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Previously, Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

The Republican president has faced criticism from within the country and internationally in the past week, after he said Ukraine should have "never started" a war before changing course and saying that Russia was indeed invading Ukraine.

"The war does not need to happen. The war was provoked. That does not mean the war was provoked by Russia. There were many talks at the time about Ukraine joining NATO. It didn't have to happen. Basically, the war was a threat to Russia," Witkoff told CNN on Sunday.