No One Will Use the U.S. Anymore: Trump

The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has stated that Ukraine's leader, Vladimir Zelensky, must offer something in return for the funds spent by Washington on Ukraine. He made this remark during a meeting at the White House with the Prime Minister of Japan, as reported by Sky News.

Trump mentioned the "subterranean resources of Ukraine." He emphasized, "We have already told him (Zelensky) about the equivalence of American taxpayers' money." According to Trump, everyone has benefited from the "good old United States," but that will no longer be the case.

"One of the things discussed with President Zelensky is the security of their assets. Their assets are underground – rare resources," he clarified.

Trump also stated that he expects to meet with Zelensky next week, suggesting that the meeting may take place in Washington.

He reiterated his intention to speak with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. This week, Trump announced his plans to strike a deal with Ukraine, wherein assistance would be provided in exchange for rare metals.

According to the Financial Times, the accessibility of Ukrainian resources was one of the points in Zelensky's "victory plan," which he presented to Trump last autumn, even before the elections. Later, a consultant from Zelensky's office, Mikhail Podolyak, specified that this concerns, in particular, lithium and titanium deposits.

As reported by The New York Times and the Financial Times, Kyiv is ready for a rare metals deal, provided that Washington guarantees they will not fall into Moscow's hands. Zelensky responded to his American counterpart that Ukraine is open to joint extraction of minerals with Western partners in exchange for support, calling it fair.

In the Kremlin, commenting on Trump's proposal, they stated that the U.S. is offering to buy assistance for Ukraine, but it would be better not to provide it at all and thereby contribute to the end of the conflict.