KYIV – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy firmly rejected a US demand for $500 billion worth of mineral resources as repayment for American wartime aid, arguing that the US has not provided nearly that amount in support and has offered no concrete security guarantees in return.

Facing intense pressure from Trump’s administration, Zelenskiy pointed out that Washington has supplied Ukraine with $67 billion in weapons and $31.5 billion in direct budgetary aid over the nearly three-year conflict with Russia—far less than the sum being requested. "You can’t just call it $500 billion and expect us to return that in minerals or anything else. That’s not a serious negotiation," Zelenskiy stated.

Trump has insisted that Kyiv hand over $500 billion in rare earth minerals in exchange for US support. Last week, Washington presented a deal, but Ukraine refused to sign it in its current form. Zelenskiy criticized the proposal for lacking essential security guarantees that Ukraine desperately needs to defend itself against Russian aggression. He revealed that the draft deal suggested the US take ownership of 50% of Ukraine’s critical minerals—a term he found unacceptable.

"I am here to defend Ukraine, not to sell it. I told them, ‘Give us something positive. Write in some guarantees, and we’ll consider a memorandum... some kind of percentage agreement.’ But they only insisted on 50%. So I said, ‘No.’ Let the lawyers rework it," he explained. The debate over how much aid the US has actually given Ukraine is becoming a key diplomatic issue as Kyiv fights to maintain Washington’s crucial support.

Trump recently questioned where all the aid money had gone. In response, Zelenskiy clarified that the US and the European Union together have provided about $200 billion, while Ukraine itself has contributed around $120 billion to its war effort, covering the remaining costs of $320 billion in total military expenditures.

Disclaimer: This image is taken from Reuters file.