Ukraine 'May Be Russian Someday': Trump Says While Floating He Wants $500BN In Rare Earth Minerals

Among many provocative and controversial statements within the first month of his presidency, this may be one of President Trump's most 'shocking' yet - or at least that's how it will be received in Kiev and among NATO allies.

In a Fox interview which aired Monday night, Trump suggested that Ukraine "may be Russian someday" as he discussed options for achieving a negotiated peace in the wake of the Russian invasion.

"They may make a deal, they may not make a deal. They may be Russian someday, or they may not be Russian someday," Trump stated. Watch:

In the interview he also reiterated that America should be paid back for the massive amounts of aid it has provided Ukraine for the last three years of war, in the form of unfettered access to rare earth minerals.

"We are going to have all this money in there, and I say I want it back. And I told them that I want the equivalent, like $500bn worth of rare earth," Trump said. "And they have essentially agreed to do that, so at least we don’t feel stupid."

The reference to feeling 'stupid' can be understood in context of some of Trump's remarks on the prior campaign trail, where he likened the billions in US taxpayer dollars sent to Ukraine to being swindled by a salesman.

"Every time Zelensky comes to the United States he walks away with $100 billion, I think he’s the greatest salesman on Earth," Trump said back in September while addressing a rally in Georgia.

The Zelensky government has meanwhile expressed interest in such a deal - rare earth minerals in exchange for continued military support from Washington. Many analysts believe that without heavy weapons from the West, Ukraine's military would essentially collapse overnight.

Zelensky has said over the past weekend, "If we are talking about a deal, then let’s do a deal, we are only for it." He added, "The Americans helped the most, and therefore, the Americans should earn the most. And they should have this priority, and they will. I would also like to talk about this with President Trump."

Trump's top officials are also backing such a plan. For example On NBC News’ "Meet the Press," national security advisor Mike Waltz explained, "The President is prepared to put all of those issues on the table, including the future of US aid to Ukraine. We need to recoup those costs." He continued, "That will be a partnership with the Ukrainians in terms of their rare earth, natural resources, oil, and gas."

But there's one big problem: well over half of Ukraine's concentration of minerals are located in the four territories annexed by Russia, with about a quarter of the total rare earth wealth being concentrated in Dnipropetrovsk, which borders the oblasts Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk - these having been declared part of the Russian Federation.

There's also the question of efficient extraction at these mines in the midst of an active war zone, where Russia still controls the skies over Ukraine.