The interest shown by US President Trump in Ukraine’s valuable minerals has brought the country’s natural resources to the forefront. Despite possessing approximately 5% of the world’s mineral reserves, Ukraine has some of its minerals controlled by Moscow due to the Russia-Ukraine War. Here are the valuable minerals that Ukraine possesses…Claiming that it was an “absolute necessity” for the US to have ownership and control in Greenland following his assumption of office, President Donald Trump has now turned his attention to Ukraine’s valuable minerals.
Throughout his election campaign and after taking the Presidency, Trump repeatedly emphasized his desire to end the Russia-Ukraine War.
In a statement made on February 3, President Trump expressed their interest in acquiring rare earth elements from Ukraine.
Stressing the need for the conflict in Ukraine to end, Trump highlighted that there should be reciprocity if the US continued to support Ukraine in the future.
The Ukrainian leader mentioned that their Victory Plan prepared last year foresaw investment from allies in protecting Ukraine’s mineral resources and they were ready to attract investments in this area.
Zelenski pointed out that their country possessed rich mineral resources, including those in areas controlled by Russia since 2014, and stated, “I told Trump, yes we are open for investment from American companies.”
TRUMP: NO LONGER FEELING STUPID
Trump, in an interview he gave yesterday, used the words, “I told them that I wanted rare earth elements worth 500 billion dollars. They accepted. At least we no longer feel stupid. Otherwise we will appear stupid. I told them, ‘We need to acquire something. We cannot continue to pay that money’.”
AA compiled information on Ukraine’s rare earth elements and critical minerals from open sources.
Rare earth elements are a group consisting of 17 metal oxides found abundantly in the Earth’s crust worldwide. They are used in various fields such as cell phones, missile systems, electronic devices, renewable energy, defense industry, and healthcare.
There are approximately 110 million tons of rare earth elements worldwide.
China is the world’s largest producer of rare earth elements with 44 million tons in reserves. Producing about 70% of the rare metals, China constitutes 85% of the global processing capacity. Russia, a party to the conflict, is also one of the leading countries in this field.
The European Commission defines Ukraine as a potential supplier for more than 20 critical raw materials. It is estimated that Kiev has around 117 types of commonly used minerals. However, Ukraine cannot benefit from all of them due to the war, infrastructure issues, and the country’s mineral policies.
According to data, about 5% of the world’s mineral reserves, including rare earth elements, are found in Ukraine.
According to data from the Turkish Ministry of Trade, Ukraine is one of the most important mineral-producing countries in the world. It is estimated that Ukraine has more than 25 million tons of iron, nearly 3 million tons of manganese ore, and reserves of 1.5 billion tons of chalk and limestone. Ukraine also has resources such as copper, zinc, and silver.
Ukraine possesses significant ores, including critical minerals such as lithium, titanium, uranium, graphite, gallium, nickel, and beryllium, yet a significant portion of them remains untapped.
Lithium, which can be used in industries such as batteries, electric vehicles, glass and ceramic, and pharmacy, places Ukraine at the forefront of lithium reserves in Europe.
According to “UkraineInvest” data, the country ranks sixth in titanium, eighth in manganese, and tenth in iron and uranium reserves worldwide.
According to NATO data, Ukraine, which owns 7% of the world’s titanium reserves, is known to be at the forefront of titanium resources in Europe.
Ukraine obtained more than $155 million in revenue from titanium exports in 2022. Titanium, known for its durability, is used in sectors such as aerospace, healthcare, maritime industry, and automotive.
Uranium, another important resource Ukraine possesses, is crucial in industries such as nuclear energy, space research, and maritime operations. Ukraine’s abundant graphite resources are used in electronics, steel industry, and aerospace sector. It is stated that Ukraine holds 20% of the world’s graphite resources in this respect.
Ukraine also has rare earth elements such as lanthanum, cerium, neodymium, yttrium, and erbium. Neodymium, used in strong magnets production, magnetic fields, phone and tablet technology, and wind turbines, is deployed while erbium is used in fiber optics communication and lasers.
Yttrium is used in laser technology and superconductors, while lanthanum enhances material durability in steel production.
It is estimated that Trump is interested in Ukraine’s minerals to benefit US’s intensive industrial production and to break China’s dominance in rare earth elements. While Ukraine holds a significant portion of the commonly used critical minerals, some, including coal deposits, shifted to Moscow’s control following the illegal annexation of Crimea by Russia in 2014 and during the war that started in 2022.
Various sources provide different figures regarding how much mineral resource Russia controls in Ukraine.
Especially after the war, Russia took control of a significant part of coal deposits located in eastern Ukraine. The Donetsk region, where the war persists, houses the majority of Ukraine’s coal reserves.
The Dnieper-Donetsk region affected by the war also accommodates around 80% of the country’s proven hydrocarbon reserves and the majority of Ukraine’s gas production conducted here.
15% of Ukraine’s industrial activities and over 20% of its exports were conducted in the Donbas region where the war was ongoing.
According to international news reports, Ukraine had to close the country’s last coking coal mine in January when Russian troops approached the town of Pokrovsk, which is located west of Donetsk, an important logistics center.
Coking coal is crucial for Ukraine’s steel sector.