‘It’s blackmail’: Ukrainians react to Trump demand for $500bn share of minerals

<p>Ukraine’s lithium deposits are among biggest in Europe and the US is looking for ‘payback’ for previous military assistance</p><p>Drawing in the snow with his finger, Mykola Hrechukha sketched out how Ukraine’s new lithium mine might look. It would have a deep central shaft, with a series of side tunnels, he said. “The lithium is good everywhere. The biggest concentration is at a depth of 200-500 metres,” he said. “We should be able to extract 4,300 tonnes a day. The potential is terrific.”</p><p>For now, though, there is little sign of activity. The deposit is buried under a large sloping field, used in communist times to grow beetroot and wheat. The mine’s proposed entrance is in an abandoned former-Soviet village, Liodiane, today a scruffy grove of acacia and maple trees. The only inhabitant is a security guard, who lives on the 150-hectare site in an ancient Gaz-53 truck. Wild boar and even a wolf sometimes wander past.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/22/its-blackmail-ukrainians-react-to-trump-demand-for-500bn-share-of-minerals">Continue reading...</a>