Ukraine’s rare earth elements could help keep US military aid flowing

KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine has offered to strike a deal with U.S. President Donald Trump for continued American military aid in exchange for developing Ukraine’s mineral industry, which could provide a valuable source of the rare earth elements that are essential for many kinds of technology.

Trump said that he wanted such a deal earlier this month, and it was initially proposed last fall by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as part of his plan to strengthen Kyiv’s hand in future negotiations with Moscow.

“We really have this big potential in the territory which we control,” Andrii Yermak, chief of staff to the Ukrainian president, said in an exclusive interview with The Associated Press. “We are interested to work, to develop, with our partners , first of all, with the United States.”

Here is a look at Ukraine’s rare earth industry and how a deal might come together:

What are rare earth elements?

Rare earth elements are a set of 17 elements that are essential to many kinds of consumer technology, including cellphones, hard drives and electric and hybrid vehicles.

It's unclear if Trump is seeking specific elements in Ukraine, which also has other minerals to offer.

“It can be lithium. It can be titanium, uranium, many others,” Yermak said. “It’s a lot.”

China, Trump’s chief geopolitical adversary, is the world’s largest producer of rare earth elements. Both the U.S and Europe have sought to reduce their dependence on Beijing.

For Ukraine, such a deal would ensure that its biggest and most consequential ally doesn’t freeze military support. That would be devastating for the country, which has been at war for nearly three years after Russia’s full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022.

The idea also comes at a time when reliable and uninterrupted access to critical minerals is increasingly hard to come by globally.

What is the state of the Ukrainian minerals industry?

Ukraine’s rare earth elements are largely untapped because of the war and because of state policies regulating the mineral industry. The country also lacks good information to guide the development of rare earth mining.

Geological data is thin because mineral reserves are scattered across Ukraine, and existing studies are considered largely inadequate. The industry’s true potential is clouded by insufficient research, according to businessmen and analysts.

In general, the outlook for Ukrainian natural resources is promising. The country’s reserves of titanium, a key component for the aerospace, medical and automotive industries, are believed to be among Europe’s largest. Ukraine also holds some of Europe’s largest known reserves of lithium, which is required to produce batteries, ceramics and glass.

In 2021, the Ukrainian mineral industry accounted for 6.1% of the country’s gross domestic product and 30% of exports.

An estimated 40% of Ukraine’s metallic mineral resources are inaccessible because of Russian occupation, according to data from We Build Ukraine, a Kyiv-based think tank. Ukraine has argued that it’s in Trump’s interest to develop the remainder before Russian advances capture more.

The European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, identified Ukraine as a potential supplier for more than 20 critical raw materials and concluded that if the country joins the 27-nation EU, it could strengthen the European economy.

Details of any deal will likely develop in meetings between U.S. and Ukrainian officials. Zelenskyy and Trump will probably discuss the subject when they meet.

U.S. companies have expressed interest, according to Ukrainian business officials. But striking a formal deal would likely require legislation, geological surveys and negotiation of specific terms.

It’s unclear what kind of security guarantees companies would require to risk working in Ukraine, even in the event of a ceasefire. And no one knows for sure what kind of financing agreements would underpin contracts between Ukraine and U.S companies.

Susie Blann contributed to this report.

乌克兰基辅——乌克兰已向美国总统唐纳德·特朗普提出，愿意与他达成协议，以继续获得美国军事援助为条件，换取乌克兰发展矿业。乌克兰矿业可以提供稀土元素的宝贵来源，而稀土元素是许多技术所必需的。

特朗普本月早些时候表示他希望达成这样的协议，而该协议最初是由乌克兰总统泽连斯基在去年秋天提出的，作为他加强基辅在未来与莫斯科谈判中筹码的计划的一部分。

乌克兰总统办公厅主任安德烈·叶尔马克在接受美联社独家采访时表示：“我们在我们所控制的领土上拥有巨大的潜力。我们有兴趣与我们的伙伴，特别是美国，合作发展。”

以下概述乌克兰稀土产业以及可能达成的交易：

什么是稀土元素？

稀土元素是一组17种元素，对许多种类的消费技术至关重要，包括手机、硬盘驱动器以及电动和混合动力汽车。

目前尚不清楚特朗普是否在乌克兰寻求特定资源，乌克兰还拥有其他矿产资源。

“可能是锂，也可能是钛、铀，还有很多其他元素，”耶尔马克说。“种类很多。”

中国是特朗普的主要地缘政治对手，也是世界上最大的稀土元素生产国。美国和欧洲都曾寻求减少对北京的依赖。

对乌克兰而言，这样的协议将确保其最大、最重要的盟友不会冻结军事支持。如果冻结军事支持，对乌克兰来说将是毁灭性的打击。自2022年2月24日俄罗斯全面入侵以来，乌克兰已陷入战争近三年。

与此同时，在全球范围内，可靠且不间断地获取关键矿产资源变得越来越困难。

乌克兰矿业现状如何？

由于战争以及国家对矿业的监管政策，乌克兰的稀土资源大多尚未开发利用。此外，该国也缺乏指导稀土开采发展的有效信息。

由于矿产资源分散在乌克兰各地，地质数据十分匮乏，而且现有研究也被认为远远不够充分。据商界人士和分析人士称，由于研究不足，该行业的真正潜力尚未得到充分挖掘。

总体而言，乌克兰自然资源前景光明。该国钛储量丰富，钛是航空航天、医疗和汽车行业的关键材料，据信储量位居欧洲前列。乌克兰还拥有欧洲已知储量最大的锂矿之一，锂是生产电池、陶瓷和玻璃的必需原料。

2021年，乌克兰矿业占该国国内生产总值的6.1%，占出口总额的30%。

据基辅智库“我们建设乌克兰”（We Build Ukraine）的数据显示，乌克兰约40%的金属矿产资源因俄罗斯占领而无法开采。乌克兰方面则认为，在俄罗斯进一步扩张之前开发剩余矿产资源符合特朗普的利益。

欧盟执行机构欧盟委员会认定乌克兰是 20 多种关键原材料的潜在供应国，并得出结论：如果乌克兰加入由 27 个成员国组成的欧盟，将有助于增强欧洲经济。

任何协议的细节都可能在美乌官员会晤中逐步敲定。泽连斯基和特朗普会晤时很可能会讨论这个问题。

据乌克兰商界官员透露，美国公司已表达了兴趣。但达成正式协议可能需要立法、地质勘测和具体条款谈判。

即使停火，目前也不清楚企业需要何种安全保障才会冒险在乌克兰开展业务。而且，没有人确切知道乌克兰和美国公司之间的合同会以何种融资协议为基础。

Susie Blann对本报道亦有贡献。