Trump Wants Ukraine to Pay back $500 Billion

By Staff, Agencies

US President Donald Trump has said he wants to secure a deal with Kiev to ensure Washington gets its money back by trading aid for Ukraine’s rare-earth minerals – regardless of whether “they may be Russian someday.”

In an interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier, Trump claimed that “the United States is in for more than $300 billion, probably 350” in various forms of aid to Ukraine, adding that it would be “stupid” for Washington to continue bankrolling Kiev without receiving anything in return.

“I want to have our money secured because we’re spending hundreds of billions of dollars,” he said. “They have tremendously valuable land in terms of rare earth, in terms of oil and gas, in terms of other things.”

Trump further stated: “I told them that I want the equivalent, like $500 billion worth of rare earths, and they’ve essentially agreed to do that. So, at least we don’t feel stupid. Otherwise, we’re stupid. I said to them, we have to get something.”

“You know, they may make a deal, they may not make a deal, they may be Russian someday, or they may not be Russian someday, but we’re gonna have all this money in there, and I say, I want it back,” he added.

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky confirmed last week that he would be open to reaching an agreement over Kiev’s deposits of lithium, titanium, and other heavy metals. However, he insisted that Ukraine’s Western backers must first help push Russian forces out of mineral-rich territories before they can invest in rare-earth resources.