Moscow [Russia], February 25: Russia's President Vladimir Putin offered the U.S. the opportunity for joint exploration of the country's rare earth metals deposits, as well as the supply of aluminum to the U.S. domestic market, outlining a future economic deal between the two countries.
U.S. President Donald Trump earlier said that "major economic development transactions with Russia" would take place. Within two hours of Trump's statement, Putin chaired a meeting with his ministers and economic advisers on rare earth metals.
"We, by the way, would be ready to offer our American partners, and when I say 'partners,' I mean not only administrative and governmental structures but also companies, if they showed interest in joint work," Putin said on state TV after the meeting.
"We undoubtedly have, I want to emphasize, significantly more resources of this kind than Ukraine," Putin added. He mentioned that a potential U.S.-Ukraine deal, opens new tab involving rare earth metals is not a concern for Russia.
He noted that Russian companies could supply up to 2 million tons of aluminum to the U.S. market annually if the U.S. market reopens. Russia used to provide around 15% of U.S. aluminum imports before prohibitive duties were introduced in 2023.
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation
