Agree to the minerals deal or lose Starlink
Three years into a war that reshaped the European order, the United States finds itself negotiating not just the terms of peace but the terms of its own loyalty. Donald Trump reversed his claim that Ukraine bore responsibility for the invasion, acknowledging Putin's role while redirecting blame toward Zelenskyy and Biden — a rhetorical shift that reveals less about truth than about leverage. As Washington presses Kyiv to sign a minerals deal under threat of losing critical satellite communications, and proposes a UN resolution silent on Ukrainian territorial integrity, the deeper question being answered is not how the war ends, but who decides what Ukraine is permitted to keep.
- Trump's reversal on who started the war — now admitting Russia invaded on Putin's orders — did little to ease pressure on Kyiv, as blame was swiftly redirected toward Zelenskyy and Biden.
- American negotiators wielded Starlink access as a weapon, explicitly threatening to cut Ukraine's military communications lifeline unless Zelenskyy signs the minerals agreement.
- Washington's proposed UN resolution omits any mention of Ukrainian territorial integrity, a silence Moscow's UN ambassador welcomed as 'a good move' — signaling possible American acceptance of Russian-held land.
- Zelenskyy is racing to consolidate European support, calling on allies to do more, even as British Prime Minister Starmer prepares to meet Trump without challenging him on his attacks against Ukraine's president.
- On the ground, Russian drone and guided bomb attacks continued to kill and wound civilians, including a rail worker near Kyiv, while diplomats in Riyadh held the first face-to-face US-Russia talks on ending the war.
Donald Trump spent the week contradicting himself on the most basic fact of the Ukraine war. On Tuesday he suggested Kyiv had started the conflict; by Friday he acknowledged Russia invaded on Putin's orders — then pivoted to blame Zelenskyy and Biden for failing to prevent it. The reversal matters because it frames everything now unfolding in negotiations.
At the center of those negotiations is a minerals deal Washington is pressing Ukraine to sign. Trump's national security adviser Mike Waltz said Zelenskyy was expected to sign imminently; Zelenskyy confirmed drafting was underway, though he hoped for 'a fair result.' Earlier in the week he had rejected American demands for $500 billion in mineral wealth as repayment for wartime aid, noting the US had supplied far less and offered no security guarantees in return.
Behind closed doors, American negotiators reached for a sharper instrument. According to sources who spoke to Reuters, US officials threatened to cut Ukraine's access to Starlink — the satellite system underpinning both civilian communications and military operations — unless Kyiv agreed to the minerals deal. The threat was delivered explicitly during meetings between Trump's special envoy Keith Kellogg and Zelenskyy on Thursday.
The diplomatic terrain is shifting in ways that should alarm Kyiv. Washington proposed a UN resolution on the war that makes no mention of Ukrainian territory under Russian occupation — a stark departure from a rival draft by Ukraine and its European allies that calls for preserving Ukrainian sovereignty. The omission signals that American negotiators may be prepared to accept permanent Russian territorial gains as part of any settlement.
Zelenskyy has been pressing European leaders to do more, arguing that a coordinated European-American strategy could end the war. But that coordination looks fragile. British Prime Minister Starmer, ahead of a meeting with Trump next week, has chosen not to confront the American president over his treatment of Zelenskyy. Trump, meanwhile, accused both Starmer and Macron of doing nothing to help end the conflict.
The fighting has not paused for the diplomacy. A Russian drone killed a rail worker near Kyiv; drone fragments struck residential buildings in the capital. In Zaporizhzhia, a guided bomb attack on Huliaipole injured three people. Kellogg, departing Kyiv after three days, called Zelenskyy 'the embattled and courageous leader of a nation at war' — a striking contrast to Trump's characterization of him as a dictator, suggesting at least a surface tension within the American team.
Russia, for its part, is exploring whether $300 billion in frozen sovereign assets held in Europe might be used for reconstruction — on the condition that some funds go toward rebuilding the fifth of Ukraine currently under Russian control. These discussions remain early, but they are being floated as a potential component of a peace deal. The first face-to-face US-Russia talks on ending the war took place February 18 in Saudi Arabia. What emerges from those conversations will determine whether Ukraine retains any meaningful voice in its own future.
Donald Trump has spent the past week contradicting himself on the most basic fact of the war in Ukraine. On Tuesday, he said Kyiv "should have never started" the conflict three years ago—a claim that drew sharp criticism from allies and adversaries alike. By Friday, sitting for an interview with Fox News radio, he reversed course. Russia did invade Ukraine, he acknowledged. Vladimir Putin gave the order. But then Trump pivoted to blame: Zelenskyy and Joe Biden should have stopped it from happening. "They shouldn't have let him attack," he said, as if the Ukrainian president and the outgoing American one bore responsibility for Moscow's decision to launch a full-scale invasion.
This rhetorical whiplash matters because it frames everything happening in the negotiations right now. Trump is predicting that Ukraine will soon sign a minerals agreement with the United States—a deal that has become the centerpiece of American leverage over Kyiv. His national security adviser, Mike Waltz, said on Friday that Zelenskyy was expected to sign imminently. Zelenskyy himself confirmed that Ukrainian and American teams were drafting the agreement, though he expressed hope for "a fair result." The tension is real. Earlier in the week, Zelenskyy had rejected American demands for $500 billion in mineral wealth as repayment for wartime aid, pointing out that the US had supplied nowhere near that amount and had offered no concrete security guarantees in return.
Behind closed doors, American negotiators have been using a weapon far more potent than rhetoric. According to three sources who spoke to Reuters, US officials have threatened to cut Ukraine's access to Starlink—the satellite internet system that provides crucial communications for both the civilian population and the military. During meetings on Thursday between Keith Kellogg, Trump's special envoy for Ukraine, and Zelenskyy, the threat was explicit: agree to the minerals deal or lose Starlink. It is a form of pressure that strikes at the nervous system of Ukraine's war effort, not merely its economy.
Meanwhile, the diplomatic landscape is shifting in ways that should alarm Kyiv. Washington has proposed a UN resolution on the war that makes no mention of Ukrainian territory occupied by Russia. This stands in stark contrast to a rival draft produced by Ukraine and its European allies, which emphasizes the need to intensify diplomatic efforts to end the war this year while preserving Ukrainian sovereignty. Moscow's ambassador to the UN welcomed Washington's text as "a good move." The omission is not accidental. It signals that American negotiators may be prepared to accept, as part of any settlement, the permanent loss of Ukrainian land to Russian control.
Zelenskyy has been working the phones with European leaders, calling on them to do more to achieve peace. "Europe must and can do much more," he said after a series of calls. He suggested that a European strategy, implemented together with America, could end the war. But the coordination he is seeking appears fragile. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, preparing for a meeting with Trump next week, has decided not to challenge the American president over his attacks on Zelenskyy, according to reporting from London. Starmer is trying to cool an escalating transatlantic row. Trump, for his part, added fuel on Friday by accusing both Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron of doing nothing to help end the war.
On the ground, the fighting continues. A Russian drone attack on Saturday killed a rail worker at a crossing outside Kyiv in the Boryspil district to the east. Drone fragments fell on residential buildings in the capital's Solomyanskyi district, starting a fire and shattering windows in a nearby structure, though no one was killed there. Air raid alerts lasted about three hours. In the southern Zaporizhzhia region, Russian forces attacked the town of Huliaipole with a guided bomb, injuring three people. A day earlier, one person had died in a similar attack on a village west of Huliaipole.
Kellogg, who left Kyiv on Friday after a three-day visit, has struck a notably different tone from his boss. He called Zelenskyy "the embattled and courageous leader of a nation at war"—a stark contrast to Trump's false characterization of the Ukrainian president as a "dictator." On social media, Kellogg described his meetings as "extensive and positive discussions" with Zelenskyy and his national security team. The gap between the envoy's language and the president's suggests internal disagreement about how to treat Ukraine, or at least a recognition that some diplomatic niceties must be maintained even as pressure mounts.
Russia, meanwhile, is exploring its own leverage. According to three sources who spoke to Reuters, Moscow is considering whether $300 billion in frozen sovereign assets held in Europe could be used for Ukrainian reconstruction—but with a condition: that a portion of those funds be spent on the fifth of Ukraine that Russian forces currently control. These discussions between Russia and the United States are still in their earliest stages, but the idea is being floated in Moscow as a potential component of a peace deal. The first face-to-face talks between Russian and American officials on ending the war took place on February 18 in Saudi Arabia. What emerges from those conversations, and from the minerals negotiations now underway, will shape whether Ukraine retains any say in its own future.
Citas Notables
They shouldn't have let him attack— Donald Trump, on Zelenskyy and Biden's responsibility for preventing the Russian invasion
I am hoping for a fair result— Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on the minerals agreement negotiations
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why does Trump keep changing his story about who started the war?
Because the facts don't serve his narrative. Admitting Russia invaded means he has to explain why he's now pressuring Ukraine to give up minerals and accept territorial losses. Blaming Zelenskyy and Biden lets him frame this as their failure, not his capitulation.
What's the real leverage here—the minerals deal or the Starlink threat?
The Starlink threat is the real leverage. Minerals are abstract; losing internet access is immediate. You can't run a military without communications. That's why threatening it works.
Why would Zelenskyy agree to anything under this kind of pressure?
Because he's running out of options. The US is his largest military supporter. If Trump cuts him off, Europe alone can't sustain the war effort. He's negotiating from weakness, and everyone knows it.
What does that UN resolution without territorial language actually mean?
It means the US is signaling it's willing to accept a settlement where Russia keeps what it's conquered. It's a diplomatic way of saying: we're done fighting for Ukrainian borders.
Is Kellogg's praise of Zelenskyy genuine, or is he just being diplomatic?
Probably both. Kellogg seems to understand that you can't negotiate effectively with someone you've publicly humiliated. Trump doesn't seem to care about that distinction.
What happens if Zelenskyy refuses the minerals deal?
Then he loses Starlink, his military loses communications, and the war becomes much harder to fight. That's not really a choice—it's a threat dressed up as negotiation.