Finally another reason for Putin's war with Ukraine is fast emerging.
"President Donald Trump says he wants access to Ukraine’s bonanza of rare earth and critical minerals in exchange for the billions of dollars in military aid Washington has been supplying to Kyiv.
It’s an idea previously suggested by Republican senators and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who sought to appeal to Trump’s dealmaker persona as a way of keeping alive Washington’s support of Kyiv." (NBC News: 4 February 2025) (my emphasis)
Alexander Smith goes on to report that,
"That impulse has prompted nervousness among Kyiv’s supporters that Trump may try to force a ceasefire favorable to Russian President Vladimir Putin. With Russia making steady battlefield gains, Putin has shown no appetite for a truce without significant territorial gains and a promise Ukraine will never join NATO." (ibid Alexander Smith)
"President Donald Trump said Monday that he wants to do a deal with Ukraine for access to the country's rare earth minerals in return for U.S. support in its war against Russia." (Mail Online: 3 February 2025) (my emphasis)
He goes on to report that,
"National security analysts say the U.S. has lost ground to China on securing access to the crucial elements.
That gives China leverage over the U.S. if Trump's plans to slap tariffs on Beijing trigger a global trade war." (ibid Rob Crilly)
This 'quid-pro-quo' from Trump viz. Ukraine's minerals for US support, has come under fire from German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
As Tim Zadorozhnyy (left) reports
"German Chancellor Olaf Scholz criticized U.S. President Donald Trump's proposal to tie military aid for Ukraine to access to the country's rare earth resources, calling it "very selfish and self-centered," Spiegel reported on Feb. 4.
Speaking after an informal meeting of European leaders in Brussels, 
Scholz (right) reportedly stressed that Ukraine should first be helped to "get back on its feet" and that its resources should be used for reconstruction after the war." (Kyiv Independent: 4 February 2025) (my emphasis)
But it is not only Putin's war in Ukraine that Trump views purely through the eyes of a possible "business proposition for the US".
Trump has also set his "business eyes" on Greenland and, more recently, on Gaza.
"A memorandum of understanding prepared under the Biden administration last year said the US would promote investment opportunities in Ukraine’s mining projects to American companies in exchange for Kyiv creating economic incentives and implementing good business and environmental practices." (CNN: 4 February 2025) (my emphasis),
Trump's "quid-pro-quo" demands to have, "access to Ukraine’s bonanza of rare earth and critical minerals in exchange for the billions of dollars in military aid Washington has been supplying to Kyiv" signifies a real political gulf between the EU and UK, and President Trump.
The EU and Britain sees Putin's war with Ukraine as a matter of European security, the international 'Rule of Law', and morality, whereas Trump seeems to view if purely in "business 'dealmaking' terms", as he now also views Gaza and Greenland.
"Ukraine's fight against Russian aggression is a defense of its right to freedom and its place in the European family. Therefore, its accession to the European Union is a matter of justice for Ukraine and security for the EU.
...
And this is not only about Ukraine. In a world where size and weight matter, and where small countries can be blackmailed more easily, it is in our shared interest to unite the European family," von der Leyen said." (Unrinform: 5 February 2025) (my emphasis)
Undescoring Ukraine's right to freedom and its place in the European family, Vlad Litnarovych reports that,
…
Starmer urged Ukraine’s allies, especially in Europe, to step up their support to help Kyiv sustain its defenses.
…
Earlier, the United Kingdom and Ukraine signed a 100-year partnership agreement to foster strong ties across the full range of relations, including trade, security, defense, science and technology, education, culture, and more." (United24: 4 February 2025) (my emphasis)
The fact that,
"A little over £6 trillion of Ukraine’s mineral resources, which is around 53 per cent of the country’s total, are contained in the four regions Mr Putin illegally annexed in September 2022, and of which his army occupies a considerable swathe." (Tom Watling: The Independent on MSN: 5 February 2025) (my emphasis)
further cements Putin's demands for Ukraine's full capitulation.
Thus, as Pravda EN reports,
"Putin will not end the war soon and has planned a slow offensive": The Americans have no doubt that the Russians will continue to win, and Kiev will continue to lose territories. (Telegram "dimsmirnov175": Pravda EN: 5 February 2025) (my emphasis)
Trump, with his demands of "access to Ukraine’s bonanza of rare earth and critical minerals in exchange for the billions of dollars in military aid to Kyiv", strengthens Putin's negotiating hand.
With Russia's economy failing, and Putin's army illegally occupying Ukraine's territory containing 53% of Ukraine's mineral resources, Trump may try to force a ceasefire favourable to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
UPDATE: 5 February 2025: 18:31 GM
Putin's TV political propaganda pundits discuss Trump following the Putin political 'road map' that demands the complete capitulation of Ukraine in the war he has unleashed on Ukraine for the SECOND time since 2014.
(to be continued)
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