President Trump on Friday said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is late to sign the minerals agreement with the U.S., nearly two months after an expected deal signing was called off.
“Ukraine, headed by Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has not signed the final papers on the very important Rare Earths Deal with the United States. It is at least three weeks late. Hopefully, it will be signed IMMEDIATELY. Work on the overall Peace Deal between Russia and Ukraine is going smoothly. SUCCESS seems to be in the future!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Trump shared the post while he was traveling to Rome for Pope Francis’s funeral, which Zelensky is also planning to attend.
Trump last week said he expects to sign the deal with Ukraine in the coming days, telling reporters it would be “soon.” At the time, Treasury Department Secretary Scott Bessent clarified that White House officials were “still working on the details” of where and when the signing would take place, but that they were “shooting for” this upcoming Saturday.
Zelensky reportedly said last week that Kyiv and Washington could soon sign a memorandum of intent related to the deal.
When Zelensky visited the U.S. in late February, he was expected to sign off on a deal that would give the U.S. access to Kyiv’s critical mineral supply in exchange for some protection amid its war with Russia, but Trump called off talks after the two leaders clashed.
Last month, Trump signed an executive order seeking to boost production of critical minerals in the U.S. while confirming the deal with Ukraine was still on track.
In an interview with Time magazine published earlier Friday, Trump blamed Ukraine for initiating the war with Russia by eyeing a NATO membership and said he thinks Crimea will stay under Moscow’s control as part of a deal to end the war.
And, the president said Thursday that Russia would be making a concession toward peace if it agrees not to take over Ukraine. He has also said Zelensky has been harder to work with than Russian President Vladimir Putin.