U.S. President Donald Trump said on the 30th (local time) that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is "trying not to enter into a rare earth agreement" regarding the mineral agreement between the U.S. and Ukraine.
According to Reuters, President Trump met with reporters on a plane returning from Palm Beach, Florida, to Washington D.C. and said, "If he does that, he will have big problems (big, big problems)."
He continued, "Zelensky wants to become a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), but he will never be able to." He added, "He understands that."
Earlier, President Trump attempted to sign a mineral agreement with President Zelensky, who visited the U.S. at the end of last month, but discussions turned public and contentious over differences regarding a peace treaty for the Ukraine war, leading to the cancellation of the signing.
After this, President Zelensky expressed regret over the heated exchange, and the U.S. and Ukraine are currently in negotiations to finalize the mineral agreement. To this end, the two sides revealed that the U.S. has sent the relevant documents for the mineral agreement to Ukraine.
In this regard, Minister Scott Vance noted on the 26th, "We hope to have full discussions and possibly sign next week."