In a bold diplomatic maneuver, Russian officials are offering a proposed economic partnership that would give the United States rare earth mineral access in Ukrainian territories that Moscow controls. The talks, which took place in Riyadh last week, included top Trump administration officials including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and their Russian counterparts, Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov and key Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov.
Following U.S. officials, Russia pitched America on participating in the mineral extraction in those two Russian-annexed regions – Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia, in 2022. The proposal is being made as part of broader peace talks for the ongoing conflict, with Russian President Vladimir Putin presenting the deal as a step towards normalisation.
Ex-U.S. diplomats speculate Putin’s plan is intended to complement Trump’s economic nationalism. “Trump is a deal-maker and Putin is aware of that,” a retired diplomat said. 
US President Donald Trump acknowledged the proposal on Monday, implied a willingness to examine economic cooperation with Russia. They have a lot of things we are looking for,” he said, pointing out rare earth resources.
Yet, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy remains unmoved, as he did last time when the U.S. made a similar proposal. At the same time, experts say landmines in conflict areas could be the biggest problem faced by extractors.
As talks progress, there is rising possibility of an historic U.S.-Russia economic deal in conflict-torn Ukraine that could up-end global alliances and oil flows.
