Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free
Your guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the world
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine has reached new deals with several European allies to deepen intelligence co-operation as he rejected Donald Trump’s latest proposal to take control of Ukrainian assets.
Speaking to reporters in Kyiv’s presidential palace on Friday, Zelenskyy said intelligence sharing was critical for Ukraine to defend against Russia’s attacks and target its forces. Kyiv has been seeking alternatives after the US cut access to intelligence and military aid for a week earlier this month.
Zelenskyy declined to provide details but said that “this is a European initiative — expanding Ukraine’s access to intelligence, access to relevant technologies, satellites that our European colleagues have”.
He said Kyiv’s European partners planned to announce new defence packages at an April 11 meeting hosted by Germany and the UK, to be held in the Ramstein format set up to co-ordinate military supplies to Ukraine.
Kyiv and its European partners agreed in Paris on Thursday to license the joint production of air defence systems and artillery, he added.
Zelenskyy confirmed Ukraine had received from the Trump administration an expansive new draft proposal for a critical minerals, energy and infrastructure deal, but described it as “entirely different” from one agreed in previous talks.
Relations between Ukraine and its most significant ally have been rocky as Trump re-establishes relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and seeks Ukrainian agreement for income streams that he considers recompense for past US military aid.
Zelenskyy said he wanted “to get a review from lawyers at the highest level” of the new deal before agreeing to anything.
A senior Ukrainian official said on Thursday that a team of legal advisers had been brought in to help the government examine the document as it prepared a counter-offer.
The Biden administration had sought to formalise long-term access to Ukrainian mineral and energy resources, which are now seen as vital to Trump’s efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war and make a dent in China’s domination of critical minerals in particular.
But Ukrainian officials are wary of deals that they fear could undermine their nation’s sovereignty, send profits abroad and disrupt its integration with the EU.
“We cannot accept any arrangement that undermines our EU path,” Zelenskyy said.
In a further sign of tension, Zelenskyy rejected Trump’s insistence that billions of dollars of military assistance provided by the US to date should be viewed as loans to be repaid through the agreement, especially when the proposed deal lacks security guarantees for Ukraine.
The latest proposal states that “the contributions of the United States following the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022” would be “deemed as contributions to the partnership”.
The latest version also grants the US greater control, as it would appoint three of the five board members of a fund to hold the Ukrainian assets, giving Washington full veto power.
Commenting on recent partial ceasefires between Russia and Ukraine agreed by the two countries and the US, and further negotiations to bring Moscow’s all-out war to an end, Zelenskyy said he would be willing to speak with any Russian representative except Putin.
The comment follows remarks by Putin on Thursday questioning Zelenskyy’s legitimacy, calling for elections in Ukraine and saying an interim government should take over the country under the auspices of the UN.
Source link
