Economy minister to meet with party leaders before parliament ratifies minerals deal
Ukraine's Economy Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko will meet with each faction of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, before the government votes to ratify the minerals agreement with the United States, the news outlet Suspilne reported on May 5.
Svyrydenko signed the much-anticipated minerals deal in Washington D.C. on April 30 alongside U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. The agreement establishes a joint investment fund between Kyiv and Washington and grants the U.S. special access to projects developing Ukraine's natural resources.
Before parliament votes to ratify the minerals deal, Svyrydenko will hold separate meetings with members of the Verkhovna Rada from each faction, Serhii Sobolev, an MP from the Batkivshchyna (Fatherland) party, told Suspilne.
MPs will be able to ask questions and learn more about the details of the agreement during these meetings, Sobolev said.
"So far we have not had the opportunity to read the appendices, perhaps because they contain documents that represent state or commercial secrets and this cannot be announced publicly," he said.
The meetings with Svyrydenko will take place on May 6 and 7, according to Sobolev.
The Verkhovna Rada has scheduled the ratification vote for May 8.
The signing of the minerals deal followed months of negotiations that at times became contentious and strained the relationship between the U.S. and Ukraine. The nations first planned to ink the deal in late February, but the agreement fell apart in the wake of the infamous White House argument between President Volodymyr Zelensky and U.S. President Donald Trump.
The final deal avoids many elements in the earlier drafts that experts viewed as exploiting Ukraine, but still provides no concrete security guarantees from the U.S. The finalized agreement does prevent counting previously delivered U.S. military aid as a contribution to the joint fund.
Andrew Chakhoyan
