**US and Ukraine Close to Signing Minerals Deal**
US President Donald Trump said he expects to sign a deal with Ukraine about critical minerals soon. This is good news for the two countries, which had planned to sign a similar agreement on February 28.
However, things didn’t go as planned back then. There was a disagreement between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that caused problems. The US and Ukraine have been working on this deal for some time now.
The deal is about the ownership of Ukrainian power plants by American firms. This means that if an American company wants to own a power plant in Ukraine, it would be allowed to do so under the terms of the agreement.
Some people were worried that the minerals deal was no longer on the table. But White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said this wasn’t the case. She just meant that the US was focusing on getting a lasting ceasefire in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
**What Does the Deal Mean?**
The minerals agreement is important because it would create a fund to which Ukraine would contribute 50% of the profits from extracting state-owned resources like oil, gas, and logistics infrastructure. This fund would be invested back into Ukraine each year to promote safety, security, and prosperity in the country.
Ukraine had previously rejected earlier versions of this deal because they didn’t provide enough security guarantees. But now, a final version has been approved that includes a statement saying the fund will support the safety and prosperity of Ukraine.
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