Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in the United States on Thursday local time to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump on a critical mineral deal between his country and the U.S., according to flight information, Reuters reports.
Earlier in the day, Trump said that he would meet with Zelensky at 11:00 local time on Friday. The two leaders are expected to discuss agreements on mineral and rare earth development.
According to the text released by Ukrainian media, the agreement on establishing a reconstruction investment fund between Ukraine and the U.S. consists of 11 points.
Multiple media outlets from both countries have noted that regarding Ukraine's highly anticipated security guarantees, the agreement only briefly mentions in the 10th point: "The Government of the United States of America supports Ukraine's efforts to obtain security guarantees needed to establish lasting peace."
According to the latest update from a senior U.S. government official on Thursday, the mineral agreement that Trump plans to sign with Zelensky on Friday does not include any future U.S. commitment to supporting Ukraine.
The official also noted that the economic partnership between the U.S. and Ukraine does not include any specific guarantees for future war funding, nor any commitment to deploy U.S. personnel in the region. The official emphasized that the mineral agreement is an "important next step" in ending the Ukraine crisis.
Also on Thursday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that the relevant agreement has been completed, and that both sides will sign it on Friday, with no further negotiations on the matter.
The Ukrainian cabinet has approved an order authorizing government officials to sign a minerals partnership agreement with the United States, the news outlet Ukrayinska Pravda reported Thursday.
According to the document, the agreement will be signed either by First Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko or Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha.
On Wednesday, the Ukrainian cabinet adopted a set of measures necessary for signing the deal, which will establish a joint investment fund co-owned and co-managed by both governments.
