Bessent Pledges ‘economic Commitment’ To Ukraine As Trump Pushes For Negotiations

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says economic cooperation between the U.S. and Ukraine will be key to ensuring that the war-torn country is secure, as President Donald Trump increasingly publicly pushes for an end to the Russian-Ukraine war.

In a Wednesday press conference alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, Bessent told reporters an economic partnership would show the Kremlin that the Trump White House was committed to standing by its ally.

“We believe that this is an important signal to the world, to Russian leadership, that we stand together,” Bessent said. “And by increasing our economic commitment through a partnership with the government and the people of Ukraine, that it will provide, once this conflict is over, it will provide a long-term security shield for all Ukrainians.”

The U.S. on Wednesday presented Zelenskyy with a draft proposal for what economic cooperation could look like, according to Bessent. The Ukrainian president said on X that he expects to make progress on an agreement by the Munich Security Conference this weekend.

Trump has publicly been agitating for a peace deal, and on Wednesday spoke with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskyy. Also on Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at NATO headquarters that returning Ukraine to its 2014 borders, before Russia’s annexation of Crimea, “is an unrealistic objective.” He also rejected the idea of Ukraine joining the alliance.

Bessent’s trip to Ukraine was his first as treasury secretary, and also marked the first visit to the country by a Trump cabinet official since the inauguration over three weeks ago.

Trump is looking ahead, Bessent said, with increasing economic cooperation also potentially accelerating Kyiv’s economic recovery.

Trump made clear in a Fox News interview that aired Monday that he thinks the U.S. should be compensated for its support of the Ukrainian war effort by gaining access to “rare earth” minerals in the country.

“And they've essentially agreed to do that so at least we don’t feel stupid,” Trump said in the interview with Bret Baier.

Ukraine has long floated leveraging its vast trove of critical elements and minerals, including lithium and titanium, in a bid to get the president and other allies on board with funding its defense.

Americans, Zelenskyy told Reuters last week, “should earn the most.”