In a televised interview following a meeting on the development of the rare earth metals industry on Monday, Putin stated that Ukraine’s prospective critical minerals agreement with the U.S. “does not concern us,” while asserting that Moscow has more to offer Trump compared to Kyiv.
“We are open to collaborating with our American partners … if they express interest in working together,” Putin remarked, emphasizing that Russia possesses “significantly more resources of this type than Ukraine.”
He highlighted mineral reserves located in Russia’s northern regions, the Caucasus, and the far east, in addition to those in Donbas, a Ukrainian area currently under Russian occupation.
“Concerning new territories,” Putin mentioned, alluding to parts of Ukraine that have been captured, “We are willing to involve foreign partners — and in our so-called new historical territories, which have returned to the Russian Federation, there are also certain reserves. We are eager to collaborate with our foreign partners, including Americans, in those regions.”
To further entice, Putin indicated that Russia would be open to joint aluminum production with the U.S. He remarked that if American firms engage with Moscow, they would “generate significant profits, and the respective quantities of aluminum would be available in the domestic market at very competitive prices.”
The Trump administration has committed to resolving the Russia-Ukraine conflict promptly, recently reflecting the Kremlin’s viewpoint about Kyiv inciting Moscow to initiate the war.
On Monday, the EU proposed its own minerals agreement to Ukraine, with European Commissioner for Industrial Strategy Stéphane Séjourné clearly stating during a visit to Kyiv: “The added value Europe provides is that we will never require a deal that’s not mutually beneficial.”
