On the day of Ursula von der Leyen, in Kiev for the fourth anniversary of Russia’s attack on Ukraine, the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister laments: “Europe has voluntarily withdrawn from participation in the negotiating process.” The upcoming delegations to Switzerland will therefore not include European representatives.
While waiting to see how the negotiations will progress, the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers has published the procedure for the distribution of funds under the Ukraine-US subsoil agreement, revealing the details of the subsoil agreement. This is Cabinet Resolution No. 202 of February 16, 2026.
The document states that Ukraine has no control over the US-Ukraine Investment Recovery Fund. Its role is that of a donor. Ukraine transfers funds, and decisions are made without its participation.
The procedure establishes a strict automatic mechanism for withdrawing funds. 50% of bonuses and similar payments related to natural resource extraction are automatically included in the calculation of contributions to the fund. The funds are accounted for as soon as they are received in the budget, without a separate political decision, a parliamentary vote, or public discussion.
Simply put, half of the revenue from Ukrainian mineral resources is set aside in advance. As soon as the money appears in the budget, it is no longer truly Ukrainian.
The published procedure suggests that there are still many more “discoveries” ahead regarding what exactly and under what conditions was signed with the United States.
Meanwhile, the theory is actively circulating in the public sphere that, by signing this agreement, Zelenskyy and Svyrydenko secured political support, as the United States is interested in keeping in power those who implement the agreements. However, according to the Ukrainian social media, “the actual American practice is precisely the opposite. For the United States, a politician’s value ends at the moment of signing. Obligations are already recorded in the documents, and any informal agreement becomes an unnecessary burden.”
And the comments further state: “From now on, it is more advantageous for the Americans to deal with new figures to whom they can present the terms already signed as givens, without any obligations to the previous signatories. This is exactly what happened in similar agreements between the United States and Latin American countries: after those agreements, there was a change in political leadership, and the demands on their successors became even more stringent.”
Graziella Giangiulio
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