#MINERALS DEAL

Ukraine has launched a tender for the right to mine a lithium deposit site in its central Kirovohrad region, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said on Wednesday.

The U.S. - Ukraine minerals deal was signed on Wednesday.

Ukraine’s leader called it a “tangible outcome of that Vatican meeting” with Trump.

Ukraine and the U.S. are expected to sign “within 24 hours” a long-awaited minerals deal touted by Washington as a form of security provision for the embattled country, but there have been reports of a last-minute hitch.

President Donald Trump has said that the U.S. will sign a new minerals deal next Thursday, in an apparent reference to talks with Ukraine.

Ukraine and the United States have made “substantial progress” in their talks on a minerals deal and will sign a memorandum in the near future, First Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said on Wednesday.

The United States’ proposed mineral deal with Ukraine is linked to plans to restore the flow of Russian gas to Europe, according to a media report.

The U.S. wants to tap into all Ukrainian mineral assets while giving little in return.

The United States wants “Ukrainians to have a sovereign and an independent country,” but Kyiv must return to the negotiating table, U.S. Vice President JD Vance has said.