Duda and Rinkēvičs: Ukraine should decide with whom to conclude agreement on rare earth minerals
Polish President Andrzej Duda and Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs believe that in the context of the current discussions in the European Union and the United States on rare earth minerals, it is up to Ukraine to decide with whom and what kind of agreement to conclude.
The heads of state said this during a joint press conference, RIA Novosti reports, Censor.NET reports.
Duda and Rinkevics were asked about the EU's proposal, which competes with the US administration's proposal to cooperate with Ukraine in developing its rare mineral deposits and share profits, which in public discussions is associated with possible security guarantees for Ukraine.
In response, the President of Poland said that it is not only about drawing profits from the use of Ukrainian minerals, but also about security guarantees for Ukraine.
"First of all, Ukraine will have to make up its mind, because it's no secret that it's not just about offering Ukraine to extract or jointly extract its natural resources, but also about what will be offered to Ukraine in return," the Polish leader said.
He noted that "all processes are taking place in the context of peace negotiations and what is hidden behind them."
"From our point of view, it is extremely important that they lead to a lasting peace that will ensure the existence of a sovereign and independent Ukrainian state," Duda said.
Rinkēvičs agreed with his Polish counterpart and emphasized that it is up to Ukraine to decide with whom and what kind of agreement it will conclude.
"The question is who will give Ukraine the best security guarantees... It is Ukraine that decides with whom and what kind of agreement to conclude. Secondly, competition is always good," said the Latvian leader.
Earlier, Politico wrote that the European Union offered Ukraine its own agreement on the use of rare earth materials. This agreement is supposed to be more favorable than the American proposal - although there are no details on it yet.
At the same time, the European Commission later explained that no new mutually beneficial agreement on Ukrainian critical materials was proposed during the February 24 visit of European commissioners to Kyiv.
