U.S. President Donald Trump said on Feb. 22 that the United States would "get our money back" after Ukraine agrees to a deal giving Washington access to half its revenues from critical natural resources.
"We're going to get our money back because it's just not fair," Trump said at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Feb. 22.
"And we will see, but I think we're pretty close to a deal, and we better be close to a deal."
The U.S. and Ukraine have been working intensively over the past few days to hammer out the details of a revised version of the resources agreement after President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected an initial proposal on the grounds that it did not offer concrete security guarantees.
Officials from both countries have indicated that they believe an agreement will be reached soon, but a draft of the new proposal seen by the New York Times (NYT) provides no specific security guarantees for Ukraine.
Trump has said that the U.S. deserves compensation for the military aid it has donated to Ukraine since Russia launched the full-scale invasion in 2022.
"I want them to give us something for all of the money that we put up," he said at CPAC.
"We're asking for rare earth and oil — anything we can get. I'm trying to get the money back or secured."
The U.S. deal currently on the table demands 50% of revenues from Ukraine's natural resources, including critical minerals, oil, and gas, as well as stakes in ports and other key infrastructure through a joint investment funds.
The new version says that the U.S. would hold a 100% financial interest in this fund, and that Ukraine should contribute to the fund until it reaches $500 billion, according to the NYT.
While Trump claims he wants to "get the money back" for the U.S., Washington has provided around $100 billion — not $500 billion — in aid to Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war.
Trump has cited the $500 billion figure in public comments, claiming on Feb. 10 that Ukraine had "essentially agreed" to a $500 billion resource deal. That figure was not included in the original version of the deal presented to Zelensky on Feb. 12.
Zelensky's rejection of the U.S. resource deal triggered a barrage of insults from Trump, who accused the Ukrainian president of being an "unelected dictator."
Reuters reported on Feb. 21 that the U.S. has threatened to cut off Ukraine's access to Starlink internet terminals it it does not sign the agreement — a claim SpaceX CEO and Trump ally Elon Musk has denied.
Martin Fornusek
