Ukraine Says Pact Signed with US Is First Step Towards Minerals Deal

Ukrainian First Deputy Prime and Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko speaks with Reuters, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 1, 2024. (Reuters)
Ukrainian First Deputy Prime and Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko speaks with Reuters, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 1, 2024. (Reuters)
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Ukraine Says Pact Signed with US Is First Step Towards Minerals Deal

Ukrainian First Deputy Prime and Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko speaks with Reuters, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 1, 2024. (Reuters)
Ukrainian First Deputy Prime and Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko speaks with Reuters, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 1, 2024. (Reuters)

Ukraine said on Thursday Kyiv and Washington had signed a memorandum as an initial step towards clinching an agreement on developing mineral resources in Ukraine, a deal promoted by US President Donald Trump.

Although both had been poised in February to sign a deal for cooperation on natural resources, it was delayed after an Oval Office meeting between Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy turned into a shouting match.

"We are happy to announce the signing with our American partners," Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukraine's first deputy prime minister and economy minister, said on social media after the signing.

Thursday's memorandum of intent paves the way for an economic partnership deal and the setting-up of an investment fund for the reconstruction of Ukraine, she added.

The signing comes after officials in Kyiv worked to repair ties following the Oval Office episode, recognizing that Ukraine needs US support in its war with Russia, which mounted a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The minerals deal is part of that effort, officials in Ukraine have said.

Trump said the accord itself could be signed next week, though the Ukrainian side gave no indication of when it expected to conclude the full deal.

A Ukrainian delegation traveled to Washington at the end of last week for talks after the United States offered a new, more expansive deal. An initial framework pact was agreed, but has never been signed.

"We have a minerals deal, which I guess is going to be signed on Thursday," Trump told reporters at the White House earlier.

He has pushed for a compact that gives the United States privileged access to Ukraine's natural resources and critical minerals in what he casts as repayment for military aid provided under former President Joe Biden.

"We're still working on the details," said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, seated beside Trump in the Oval Office, adding that the signing could come by next Friday.

"It's substantially what we'd agreed on previously," he said. "When the president was here, we had a memorandum of understanding. We went straight to the big deal, and I think it's an 80-page agreement and that's what we'll be signing."

The White House did not respond to a request for further details on the timing and contents of the agreement.

Zelenskiy had said both sides could sign the memorandum online.

"This is a memorandum of intent. And we have positive, constructive intentions," he told reporters in Kyiv, adding that the US side had made the offer to sign the memorandum before the comprehensive deal, which would require ratification by Ukraine's parliament.

Earlier, Svyrydenko said the memorandum was the first stage to record the significant progress made by Kyiv and Washington in discussing the agreement.



Gas Station Explodes in Rome, Injuring at Least 9 First Responders

Emergency services personnel work at the scene where a gas station exploded on the outskirts of Rome, Italy, July 4, 2025. Vigili del Fuoco/Handout via REUTERS
Emergency services personnel work at the scene where a gas station exploded on the outskirts of Rome, Italy, July 4, 2025. Vigili del Fuoco/Handout via REUTERS
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Gas Station Explodes in Rome, Injuring at Least 9 First Responders

Emergency services personnel work at the scene where a gas station exploded on the outskirts of Rome, Italy, July 4, 2025. Vigili del Fuoco/Handout via REUTERS
Emergency services personnel work at the scene where a gas station exploded on the outskirts of Rome, Italy, July 4, 2025. Vigili del Fuoco/Handout via REUTERS

A gas station exploded early on Friday in southeastern Rome, injuring at least nine people including eight police officers and a firefighter, police and rescuers said.

The explosion was heard across the Italian capital shortly after 8 a.m., sending up a huge cloud of dark smoke and fire visible from several areas of the city, reported the Associated Press.

Elisabetta Accardo, a spokesperson for the Roman police, said that eight police officers were injured after arriving for rescue operations.

“There were a few chain explosions after the first one,” Accardo told Italian state broadcaster RAI. “All the policemen injured suffered burns, but they are not in danger of life.”

Fire department spokesperson Luca Cari said one firefighter was also injured in the explosion, but “not seriously.” Ten teams were at work on the site, he added.

Police said they were checking the whole surrounding area for people who were injured or trapped in nearby buildings.

There was no immediate indication of the cause of the explosion.