ANKARA

The White House on Sunday criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for refusing to sign a proposed agreement granting the US access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals, calling the decision "short-sighted."

"President Zelenskyy is being short-sighted about the excellent opportunity the Trump administration has presented to Ukraine," Ukrainska Pravda online reported, quoting White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes.

Hughes said the deal would allow American taxpayers to recover funds sent to Kyiv while also benefiting Ukraine’s economy.

"Binding economic ties with the US will be the best guarantee against future aggression and an integral part of lasting peace," he stressed.

National Security Advisor Mike Waltz also weighed in on the issue on Sunday and said the US deserves “payback” from Ukraine for its support against the Russian invasion and that President Volodomyr Zelenskyy would be “very wise” to accept the minerals deal offered last week.

Zelenskyy rejected proposal

Earlier on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he has stopped his government from signing an agreement with the US on rare metals, citing concerns over national interests.

Speaking at a news conference in Munich, Germany, Zelenskyy emphasized that the proposed agreement did not align with the interests of the Ukrainian people.

In an interview with US media on Monday, US President Donald Trump did not rule out that he would want to "return" all the money spent by the American government in this country, specifically, an equivalent in the form of Ukrainian rare earth metals worth $500 billion.

"As president, I have a responsibility to ensure the quality of this document. That is why I did not allow ministers to sign the agreement because, in my opinion, it is not yet ready," he stated.

Zelenskyy stressed that the document must guarantee investments in Ukraine and be legally structured to clearly define the distribution of profits and the connection between rare metal extraction and security guarantees to his nation.

"It’s not in our interests today. Not in the interests of sovereign Ukraine. I’m just a president; I’m a manager, and after my term, there will be another manager, and its nation’s resources, they are not just mine, (they are) of our people," he stressed.

Zelenskyy reiterated his commitment to ensuring that Ukraine’s natural resources remain available for future generations.