Moscow would be open to allowing U.S. access to Russia’s rare minerals, President Vladimir Putin said Monday, an apparent counteroffer and pressure tactic as the Trump administration pushes Ukraine to sign over half its mineral wealth as repayment for U.S. support in the war.
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In an interview broadcast on Russian state television Monday evening, Putin also endorsed President Donald Trump’s proposal for three-way nuclear arms control talks with China.
“We could come to an agreement with the United States — the United States would cut [defense spending] by 50 percent, and we would cut by 50 percent,” Putin told state broadcast personality Pavel Zarubin. “And the People’s Republic of China would then join in if it wanted. We think the proposal is good, and we are ready to discuss it.”
The Russian leader spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping by telephone earlier in the day and affirmed their countries’ “comprehensive partnership” as “true friends,” according to official statements.
Putin was interviewed by Zarubin on the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. He also chaired a meeting on rare earth metals production. He stressed that Russia possesses significantly more natural resources than Ukraine.
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“We would be ready to offer [cooperation] to our American partners — when I say partners, I mean not only administrative, government structures, but also companies — if they showed interest in working together,” he said. “We certainly have substantially, and I want to emphasize this, substantially more resources of this kind than Ukraine. Russia is one of the leaders in reserves of these rare earth metals.”
Get concise answers to your questions. Try Ask The Post AI.In an interview broadcast on Russian state television Monday evening, Putin also endorsed President Donald Trump’s proposal for three-way nuclear arms control talks with China.
“We could come to an agreement with the United States — the United States would cut [defense spending] by 50 percent, and we would cut by 50 percent,” Putin told state broadcast personality Pavel Zarubin. “And the People’s Republic of China would then join in if it wanted. We think the proposal is good, and we are ready to discuss it.”
The Russian leader spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping by telephone earlier in the day and affirmed their countries’ “comprehensive partnership” as “true friends,” according to official statements.
Putin was interviewed by Zarubin on the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. He also chaired a meeting on rare earth metals production. He stressed that Russia possesses significantly more natural resources than Ukraine.
🌎
Follow World news
“We would be ready to offer [cooperation] to our American partners — when I say partners, I mean not only administrative, government structures, but also companies — if they showed interest in working together,” he said. “We certainly have substantially, and I want to emphasize this, substantially more resources of this kind than Ukraine. Russia is one of the leaders in reserves of these rare earth metals.”
