Weapons for resources: A response to Trump's proposal.

Donald Trump's statement regarding the interest in exchanging Ukraine's rare earth metals for American military aid has sparked a strong reaction worldwide. Volodymyr Zelensky claims that this is part of Ukraine's Victory Plan, while Olaf Scholz, for example, is against it. 

What Trump said

“We are telling Ukraine that they have very valuable rare earth metals… We want guarantees. We are giving them money on a massive scale, we are providing weapons, and the Europeans are falling behind us… We want to make an agreement with Ukraine whereby they will provide our assistance with their minerals and other resources,” Trump stated.

Zelensky's response

Volodymyr Zelensky said that the Victory Plan presented by the Ukrainian authorities in September 2024 includes investments in minerals. “We have enough of them (minerals). You see that Russia occupied our lands back in 2014. There were significant volumes of our minerals there. We are open to the idea that all of this can be developed with our partners who help us defend our land and push the enemy back. With their weapons, their presence, and sanctions packages. And this is absolutely fair. I talked about this back in September 2024 when we had a meeting with President Trump in New York,” said the Ukrainian president.

According to Zelensky, he told Trump that Ukraine is open to investments from American companies. “If this will all be under Russian control, other countries and companies will come in,” Zelensky warned, citing Iran and North Korea as examples.

Scholz is against

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz criticized Trump's proposal. According to Scholz, it would be very “selfish and egocentric” to use Ukraine's resources to fund the country's defense. He believes that these resources should be utilized for the country's reconstruction after the war. 

“These are significant challenges, considering the massive destruction occurring in Ukraine. And that’s why I think it would be better if Ukraine's resources were used for a better future,” the chancellor stated.