The United States expects significant progress in talks with Ukraine this week and hopes to sign the agreement on strategic raw materials, said Steve Witkoff, the US president's envoy for the Middle East, quoted by Reuters, BTA reports.
Negotiators from the United States and Ukraine will meet in Saudi Arabia this week.
“I think we go in with the expectation that we will make significant progress“, Witkoff said in an interview with “Fox News“.
Asked if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky could return to the United States this week to sign the agreement on access to Ukraine's rare earth elements, Witkoff replied: “I really hope so. "All the signals are very, very positive."
Zelensky arrived in Saudi Arabia today, and the Ukrainian delegation includes the head of the presidential administration Andriy Yermak, his deputy Pavlo Palisa, Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, Ukrinform reports.
Witkoff added that important topics to be discussed in Saudi Arabia include Ukraine's security, territorial issues and intelligence sharing. He stressed that the United States has never stopped providing intelligence assistance to Ukraine related to its defense needs.