Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Economy and Trade Representative Taras Kachka claimed during a television broadcast that ongoing negotiations regarding a mineral resources agreement between Ukraine and the United States do not involve recognizing previous US military assistance as debt.

According to Ukrinform, Kachka stated:

“There is no discussion about any new debt or transformation of previous assistance into debt. There is no ‘debt logic’ in either US or Ukrainian proposals. The conversation is about how much the US and Ukraine want to earn from investments,” Kachka stated.

According to the official, the mention of “debt” appeared in negotiations only once—in the version of the agreement text that was published in the media.

“Since then, there have been no attempts to formulate figures because everyone understands this is not debt but mutually beneficial cooperation,” Kachka claims.

Ukraine seeks changes to Trump’s proposed “lifetime-reparations” minerals deal

The official also revealed that the Ukrainian side has made proposals regarding military assistance, which now await a response from the United States. 

So far, the Trump administration has not only failed to announce any aid for Ukraine, but has even denied Kyiv’s request to purchase Patriot missiles.

On 17 April, Ukrainian and American representatives signed a memorandum confirming their joint intention to conclude a mutually beneficial economic partnership agreement between the two countries. The agreement itself still requires finalization and ratification by the parliaments of both nations.

Ukraine and US sign memorandum of intent on critical minerals cooperation

The next round of mineral resources negotiations will begin in the United States on 24 April. Currently, technical issues and formulations regarding the operation of the future investment fund are being addressed.