Ukraine and the U.S. sign a minerals deal. Trump greenlights USD 50 million in defense sales to Ukraine for the first time since taking office. A Russian drone strike on Odesa kills two, injures 15 others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ukraine and the U.S. have signed a minerals deal. \u201cOn behalf of the Government of Ukraine, I signed the Agreement on the Establishment of a United States\u2013Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund,\u201d Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukraine\u2019s First Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister, said on X Thursday, referring to the deal\u2019s official name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signed the agreement on behalf of the U.S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI thank everyone who contributed to this Agreement and helped make it stronger. It is now a document capable of delivering success for both our countries \u2014 Ukraine and the United States of America,\u201d Svyrydenko said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe U.S. affirms its commitment to long-term peace in Ukraine and acknowledges Ukraine\u2019s contribution to global security \u2014 including its decision to give up nuclear weapons. It is an Agreement that reaffirms the United States of America commitment to Ukraine\u2019s security, recovery, and reconstruction,\u201d she continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bessent referenced the accord as a \u201chistoric economic partnership agreement between the United States and Ukraine\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEconomic security is national security. [The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, or DFC] will work closely with the Government of Ukraine to establish this fund, and we look forward to quickly operationalizing this historic economic partnership for both the Ukrainian and American people,\u201d he said on X.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Svyrydenko listed the agreement\u2019s key provisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
-Full ownership and control [over the subsoil] remain with Ukraine. All resources on its territory and in its territorial waters belong to Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
-The Fund will be financed exclusively from new licenses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
-The countries will enter an equal partnership. \u201cThe Fund is structured on a 50\/50 basis. It will be jointly managed by Ukraine and the United States. Neither side will hold a dominant vote \u2014 a reflection of equal partnership between our two nations,\u201d Svyrydenko said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
-The agreement does not alter privatization processes or the management of state-owned companies \u2014 they will remain Ukrainian. Companies such as Ukrnafta and Energoatom will stay in state ownership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
-Svyrydenko said Ukraine has no debt obligations to the United States under the agreement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
-The deal also, she said, complies with Ukraine\u2019s constitution and Ukraine\u2019s path to join the European Union.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
-Only amendments to the Budget Code are required for the Fund to operate. The agreement itself will be submitted to Ukraine\u2019s Parliament for ratification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
-\u201cThe United States will help attract additional investment and technology. The Fund is supported by the U.S. government through the DFC agency. This will assist us in attracting investments and technologies from U.S., EU, and other international partners that support Ukraine\u2019s fight against the Russian aggressor,\u201d Svyrydenko said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
-Fund revenues and contributions will not be taxed in either the U.S. or Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An earlier draft of the document gave the U.S. full control over the fund, according to Ukrainian news site European Pravda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c[The deal] is consistent with national legislation and does not conflict with any of Ukraine\u2019s international obligations. Importantly, the Agreement sends a signal to global partners that long-term cooperation with Ukraine \u2014 over decades \u2014 is not only possible but reliable,\u201d Svyrydenko said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The agreement envisages the U.S. contributing new military assistance in the future, such as air defense systems. \u201cUkraine contributes 50 per cent of state budget revenues from the new rent on new licenses for new plots,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf, after the Effective Date, the Government of the United States of America delivers new military assistance to the Government of Ukraine in any form (including the donation of weapons systems, ammunition, technology or training), the capital contribution of the U.S. Partner will be deemed to be increased by the assessed value of such military assistance, in accordance with the LP Agreement,\u201d one of the clauses says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some provisions earlier made public by Ukraine Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal do not appear to be in the agreement. One of the points he highlighted is that for the first decade of the reconstruction investment fund, profits will be fully reinvested in Ukraine\u2019s economy, either in new projects or reconstruction. The provision might later be part of an additional technical deal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to European Pravda, the agreement signed on May 1 consists of 11 pages, while a March draft had more than 90 pages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Trump administration told Congress on Wednesday it would approve at least USD 50 million in defense sales to Ukraine, the Kyiv Post reported. This would be Trump\u2019s first export of military supplies to Ukraine since taking office. The paragraphs below are quoted from the article. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Wednesday, the Trump administration informed Congress of its intention to green-light the export of defense-related products to Ukraine through direct commercial sales (DCS) of $50 million or more, Kyiv Post has learned from diplomatic sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The permission \u2013 the first of its kind since Trump returned to the White House over 100 days ago \u2013 comes just weeks after the administration paused all Ukraine-related military aid for review (\u2026).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The $50 million sale license notice, first seen by Kyiv Post, was submitted to Congress via the Arms Export Control Act, a law that authorizes US Presidents to control the import and export of defense articles and services, according to formal notice sent to the Congress from the State Department\u2019s Legislative Affairs office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From 2015 through 2023, the US had quietly authorized the permanent export of over $1.6 billion in defense articles and services to Ukraine via DCS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll DCS are quiet; they don\u2019t get announced publicly like Foreign Military Sales,\u201d Colby Badhwar, security assistance analyst at Tochnyi, a research group, told Kyiv Post\u2019s Washington correspondent. \u201cThe news here is basically that it [US arms sales] is continuing, despite everyone predicting that Trump would cut Ukraine off completely,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said Ukraine was ready to buy at least 10 Patriot air defense systems from the U.S. for USD 15 billion, relying on European partners\u2019 assistance. In response, Trump again blamed Zelenskyi for starting the war with Russia. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
A major Russian drone attack on Odesa overnight on Thursday killed two people and injured 15 others, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The strike damaged apartment buildings, private homes, a school, a supermarket and cars, and sparked fires.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ukraine\u2019s state-owned railway Ukrzaliznytsia said the overnight attack damaged its tracks, the contact network and three freight cars in the region of Odesa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the people killed in his home during the attack on Odesa was a railway worker, the company said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Passenger trains were running on schedule, it added. \u201cRailway employees are carrying out rapid repair work to ensure that freight trains run to ports without interruption. They are currently following an alternative route,\u201d Ukrzaliznytsya said on Thursday morning. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"