US 'may' restore Ukraine aid after Zelenskyy says ready to sign minerals deal

(Sharecast News) - Extremely strained relations between Ukraine and the US appeared to be improving after Volodymyr Zelenskyy's said he was ready to sign a deal on the country's minerals with Washington, prompting an aide to Donald Trump to suggest that aid could be restored to the war-torn country. After an extraordinary fracas in the White House last Friday, which saw US President Donald Trump and his deputy JD Vance shout at the Ukrainian leader - who then left Washington without signing an agreement - a letter from Kyiv stated that Zelenskyy was "ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible to bring lasting peace closer"

"My team and I stand ready to work under President Trump's strong leadership to get a peace that lasts," Trump quoted Zelenskyy during a rambling address to Congress on Tuesday evening, also claiming he had "serious discussions with Russia" and "strong signals that they are ready for peace".

There was no response from Moscow on whether this was the case. Trump has pivoted American foreign policy towards Moscow and President Vladimir Putin, initiating talks on ending the war but excluding Ukraine and Europe from the discussions.

Zelenskyy's letter came on the day Trump cut off military aid to Ukraine until further notice. On Wednesday his national security adviser Mike Waltz suggested deliveries could be restored if peace talks were arranged and confidence-building measures taken.

"I think if we can nail down these negotiations and move towards these negotiations, and in fact, put some confidence-building measures on the table, then the president will take a hard look at lifting this pause," Waltz said in an interview with Fox News.

Conflicting reports also emerged on Wednesday that the US had cut off intelligence sharing with Ukraine.

In London, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has been a staunch supporter of Zelenskyy, especially after last Friday's spat with Trump, reiterated the European position that any peace deal needed security guarantees to ensure Russia would not attack again.

"The way to ensure we have peace is to ensure there are guarantees for any deal that is in place, because the surest risk that there will be conflict is if Putin thinks that he can breach any deal that may be arrived at."

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com