FT: The USA and Ukraine face obstacles in signing a mineral agreement.

The USA and Ukraine are close to signing a framework agreement on mineral resources. However, obstacles have arisen that cast doubt on the finalization of the agreement.

According to a report by the Financial Times, the main disagreement lies in the fact that the USA insists on signing both a framework agreement and a detailed fund agreement. The Ukrainian delegation, on the other hand, claims that it cannot sign both documents at once, as the fund agreement must first go through ratification in the Verkhovna Rada.

First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko flew to Washington to sign the agreement with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessen. However, when Svyrydenko's plane was already en route to the USA, problems arose. Bessen's team informed the Ukrainian side that they must 'be ready to sign all agreements or return home.'

The Ukrainian side emphasizes that they are ready to sign the framework agreement today, but the chances of this happening are '50-50,' according to one of the Ukrainian officials involved in the negotiations.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal comments on the situation on national television: 'As soon as all final details are agreed upon, which I hope will happen within the next 24 hours, the agreement will be signed, and we will take the first step.'

The agreement, according to the draft seen by the FT, involves the creation of a joint investment fund that will facilitate increased investment in the extraction of minerals, energy, and related technologies in Ukraine.

An important point for Ukraine is that the Trump administration agreed that only future military assistance will be counted as the US contribution to the agreement. Previously, Trump demanded that prior US military assistance be treated as a loan that needs to be repaid through this agreement.

This could be a significant step in relations between Washington and Kyiv, especially after the previous signing ceremony was canceled in February due to a dispute between Trump and Zelensky.

According to one of the Ukrainian officials familiar with the situation, 'we believe that the teams have worked well, and the agreement has become much better for both countries.'

Earlier, Shmyhal revealed important details of the partnership agreement on subsoil with the USA.