Putin offers Trump Russia’s rare minerals amid Ukraine deal talks

Moscow “is open to granting U.S. access to Russia’s rare minerals,” Vladimir Putin said Monday.

In an interview on the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Putin also chaired a meeting on rare earth metals production. He emphasized that Russia possesses "far greater natural resources than Ukraine."

“We are prepared to offer [cooperation] to our American partners — not only government agencies but also private companies — if they show interest in working with us,” Putin stated. “Russia has significantly, and I want to stress this, significantly more of these resources than Ukraine. We are among the world’s leaders in rare earth metal reserves.”

He pointed to Russia’s aluminum reserves, suggesting that Moscow could resume exports to the United States and collaborate with American businesses to further develop these resources.

During the meeting, Putin proposed inviting American companies to help develop aluminum reserves in Siberia’s Krasnoyarsk region, estimating the initiative’s value at $15 billion. He also suggested the United States could gain access to mineral deposits in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine.

However, U.S. sanctions against Russia prohibit such cooperation, and it is highly unlikely that any American company would risk doing business in occupied Ukrainian territory.