FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent speaks at the White House, in Washington, U.S. February 3, 2025. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will travel to Ukraine this week, Donald Trump wrote in a social media post on Tuesday, as the administration tries to end the Russia-Ukraine war and secure American access to Ukrainian natural resources.
Bessent, who will be the first cabinet-level official in Trump's administration to visit Ukraine, is set to discuss U.S. access to Ukraine's rare earth minerals, energy resources and energy assets, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter. The future of some of Ukraine's state-owned enterprises will also be discussed, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity and did not provide additional details.
Both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Trump have expressed interest in a pact under which the U.S. would receive rare earths from Ukraine in exchange for continued support in fending off Russia.
U.S. National Security Adviser Mike Waltz said in a Sunday interview that Washington was also interested in obtaining access to Ukrainian oil and gas resources in exchange for supporting Ukraine's war effort.
"We need to recoup those costs and that is going to be a partnership with the Ukrainians in terms of their rare earths, their natural resources and their oil and gas," Waltz said.
A number of other U.S. officials traveling to Europe this week will discuss the Ukraine war with Kyiv and other European allies. They include Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Vice President JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Keith Kellogg, the U.S. special envoy for Ukraine.
"The U.S. has spent BILLIONS of Dollars Globally, with little to show," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Tuesday announcing Bessent's planned visit.
Rare earths are metals used to make magnets that turn power into motion for electric vehicles, cell phones, missile systems, and other electronics. There are no viable substitutes, and demand is widely expected to grow.
Reuters reported this week that the Trump administration plans to push European allies to buy more American weapons for Ukraine ahead of potential peace talks with Moscow.
(Reporting by Gram Slattery and Max HunderEditing by Don Durfee, Frances Kerry, Nia Williams and David Gregorio)
