U.S. access to Ukraine’s vast and largely untapped rare earths and other critical minerals in exchange for a “security shield” is the latest twist in the potential peace plan for the war in Ukraine. And it is picking up steam with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in Kyiv and President Donald Trump stunning Europe by revealing he has already begun talks with Vladimir Putin.
But while U.S. investment in this underdeveloped sector would be an important positive development for both Ukraine’s economy and immediate security, it’s only one element in an absent economic strategy that Ukraine needs to create a lasting security guarantee from future Russian aggression.
In my former roles as Minister of Infrastructure and Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration, I’ve come to believe that the success of Ukraine’s recovery depends on strengthening its economy independent of the negotiation process and of political changes in Washington, Kyiv, or even Moscow. This is our own “homework” that no one else can do for us.
For the rest of this column: https://time.com/7222072/ukraine-minerals-us-security-shield-trump/