Lithium. Photo:Dnn87 – Self-photographed

This article was first published by Truthmeter.mk (North Macedonia), within the framework of Western Balkans Anti-Disinformation Project.

The agreement between the United States and Ukraine to share Kyiv’s mineral resources, particularly rare minerals, which was officially negotiated less than a month ago, has emerged as one of the key factors determining whether peace or the continuation of the war in Ukraine will prevail. This emerging, or at least increasingly visible, phenomenon in foreign policy and geopolitics has certainly been covered by Macedonian-language media outlets, with headlines such as “Ukraine gives its minerals to the United States in exchange for the right to fight”

Among the other notable topics marked by significant disinformation, we highlight the one about a terrorist of Macedonian origin being appointed as a minister in Syria’s new government

As this article is being written, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is visiting Washington, D.C., where he and U.S. President Donald Trump are expected to sign a bilateral agreement on “sharing the use of rare earths with the United States”—an agreement that, until February 27, had been widely rumored and misreported as unlikely to be signed. Things became clearer after Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal confirmed that his government had approved the deal, and U.S. President Donald Trump stated that Zelensky would be coming to Washington on Friday to “sign a very big deal.” The contents of the draft agreement between Kyiv and Washington are now known, as the Ukrainian government published the full text ahead of Zelensky’s visit, although Zelensky made a small reservation regarding security guarantees for Ukraine.

Accusations stating Ukraine was exchanging minerals for weapons

The first time the majority of domestic and international media outlets reported that the agreement had finally been reached was two days ago, on February 26th. At that time, although the actual details of the deal were still unknown, some domestic media outlets, citing international sources or Trump’s statements, rushed to publish headlines like “Ukraine gives minerals to the US for the right to fight” or “US will get rich from Ukrainian minerals, while security guarantees for Ukraine ‘hang in the air.’” While this cannot be classified as disinformation, the editorial approach in these headlines speaks volumes about the perspective through which the news of the agreement is being framed.

However, one thing is certain: this agreement, which grants the United States access to the mineral resources at Kyiv’s disposal and was officially negotiated over the past month, has become one of the key factors determining whether peace or the continuation of the war in Ukraine will prevail. The origins of the news surrounding this deal can be traced back to early February 2025, marking the resumption of U.S. arms deliveries to Ukraine following a brief hiatus since Trump took office. A Macedonian-language media outlet reported on the development, citing Trump’s statement that linked the arms shipment to a trade agreement involving the use of ores and minerals.

According to the State Department, from the start of the full-scale Russian invasion up until 2025, the US has provided Kyiv with $66 billion in military aid, and since 2014 almost $70 billion. Zelensky estimated the amount for which Ukraine received weapons at about $76 billion. Trump, on the other hand, announced a $200 billion arms deal. He also said he would make a deal with Ukrainian authorities, under which Kyiv would receive U.S. aid in exchange for rare metals, according to the news outlet, which cited Reuters as its primary source.

Only a few days later, some media outlets in the country published news with Zelensky’s statement that he was ready to make a deal with the United States for rare minerals. A Reuters report featuring an interview with Zelensky in Kyiv highlights his statement that “Ukraine should receive security guarantees from its allies as part of any agreement.”

Zelensky said that less than 20 percent of Ukraine’s mineral resources are under Russian occupation, including about half of its deposits, the report said.

 

What rare minerals are the key resources of Ukraine?

Shortly thereafter, a domestic media outlet published a comprehensive article detailing the rare minerals found in Ukraine, their uses, and their market value.

The text highlights, among other points, that “according to the Institute of Geology, Ukraine is home to elements such as lanthanum and cerium, used in televisions and lighting; neodymium, essential for wind turbines and electric vehicle batteries; and erbium and yttrium, with applications ranging from nuclear power to lasers. EU-funded research further reveals that Ukraine has reserves of scandium, although the details remain classified.” It also recalled Zelensky’s statement that

“Ukraine has the largest European reserves of titanium and uranium,” but also that “Ukraine has one of the largest confirmed reserves in Europe, estimated at 500,000 metric tons of lithium vital for batteries, ceramics, and glass.”

Titanium reserves are predominantly located in northwestern and central Ukraine, while lithium reserves are located in the center, east, and southeast, says the article.

Trump’s pressure on the deal

This was followed by Trump’s statement in an interview with Fox News, where he suggested that Ukraine could one day become part of Russia. He also stated that U.S. support comes at a price, expressing his intention to recover that money through Ukraine’s rare metals. This news, mostly published with the title: “Trump: Support for Ukraine comes at a price, we must get something, otherwise we are fools” was circulating across multiple media outlets in the country.

“I told Ukraine that I wanted $500 billion worth of rare earths. And they basically agreed to it, so at least we don’t feel stupid,” Trump said. “Otherwise we’re fools.” “I told them: We’ve got to get something. We cannot continue to give this money,” the report said. Towards the end, there were other shocking statements from Trump that could be construed as pressure, one of which was when the US president called Zelensky a “dictator,” something that after the agreement was reached Trump says he doesn’t believe he said.

“The colonization of Ukraine” and Zelensky’s famous NO

In the days that followed, the world, including domestic media outlets, dealt with: Trump’s announcement that he had a “long and productive” phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the announcement that a high-level Russian and American delegation would meet in Riyadh, and the increased chances of achieving peace in Ukraine (for which “Truthmeter.mk” published an analysis), etc.

News of the rare earths deal went largely unnoticed for several days, until it was discussed at the Munich Security Conference, where delegations from the United States, led by Vice President J.D. Vance, and from Ukraine, led by Volodymyr Zelensky, engaged in talks. This marked Zelensky’s first rejection of the deal, a development noted by some media outlets in the country:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky refused to sign a deal that would have given the United States 50 percent of all future rare earth reserves in Ukraine, news agencies reported after a meeting between Zelensky and U.S. leaders at the Munich Security Conference on February 14… “Our teams will continue to work on the document. We are prepared to move as quickly as possible toward true and guaranteed peace. We deeply appreciate the determination of President (Donald) Trump, who can help stop the war and provide justice and security guarantees for Ukraine”, Zelensky wrote on the social platform X, the post says. 

Two or three days later The Telegraph published excerpts of the draft agreement that the U.S. had prepared as early as February 7th. One domestic media outlet detailed the text with the headline: “Trump wants to colonize Ukraine,” accompanied by a subtitle that read: “Trump’s demands are more severe than the financial penalties imposed on Germany and Japan after their defeat in 1945—and exceed the reparations imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles.”

This was followed by Zelensky’s second rejection of the agreement, where his ‘no’ was accompanied by the statement that he could not sell Ukraine. This was highlighted under such a headline by several Macedonian-language media outlets. Among other things, the message stated:

The Ukrainian leader, facing intense pressure from the Trump White House, reportedly stated that Washington had provided his country with $67 billion (€64.22 billion) in arms and $31.5 billion (€30.19 billion) in direct budget support during the nearly three-year war with Russia.

“You can’t call this 500 billion and ask us to return 500 billion in minerals or something else. This is not a serious conversation,” Zelensky said.

According to him, the proposed agreement does not contain security provisions which Ukraine urgently needs in order to protect itself from Russian aggression. He stated that the draft treaty stipulates the United States would take ownership of 50 percent of Ukraine’s vital minerals.

“I am defending Ukraine, I cannot sell our country,” is part of the message published by domestic media outlets.

This was followed by news that the United States had offered Ukraine an improved version of the deal, and the news was published under the headline “Zelensky received a ‘softer’ ultimatum from Washington: Trump’s latest offer for key Ukrainian resources.” Another media outlet highlights not only Trump’s pressure but also the threat of Ukraine’s largest lithium deposit being seized by the Russians.

Ukrainian ore contracts offered by both the EU and Russia

Two pieces of information, which stand out as curious, emerged just before the deal was finalized. The first is that the European Union is offering to negotiate, or is already negotiating, with Ukraine for the use of its ores. The news, reported by domestic media outlets, states, among other things:

“European Commissioner for Industrial Strategy, Stéphane Séjourné, stated that he had presented the competing proposal to Ukrainian officials during his meeting in Kyiv, part of the European Commission’s visit to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion.”

“Twenty-one of the 30 critical materials that Europe needs can be provided by Ukraine in a win-win partnership,” Séjourné said, AFP published, a domestic media outlet reported. 

He stressed: “The added value Europe offers is that we will never seek a deal that is not mutually beneficial.”

The second piece of news is that Russia is also offering the United States a cooperation agreement on the exploitation of rare earths, both in Russia and on Ukrainian territory. This development has garnered significant attention in the domestic media landscape. While the report mentions that Putin’s offer includes resources from the occupied Ukrainian territories, only one media outlet highlighted this aspect in its headline.

How was Jashari promoted from colonel to minister?

One of the most notable instances of foreign media influencing domestic narratives by spreading disinformation or half-truths was the report that Skopje’s Abdul Jashari, designated a terrorist by the US, had been appointed as a minister in the new Syrian government.

The news was reported by several online media outlets in the Macedonian language, also shared on their Facebook accounts, which is why “Truthmeter.mk” made an appropriate fact-checking review, which can be read here.

In short, the claim that Jashari was appointed as a minister is disinformation, as there is no verifiable source to support this. In reality, the news is several weeks old, dating back to just before the New Year 2024/2025, when Jashari announced on his Facebook profile that he had been promoted to the rank of colonel in Syria’s new armed forces.

A day or two later, on December 30, Reuters published a story titled “Syria appoints some foreign Islamist fighters to its military, sources say.” The next day, the Saudi online media outlet Arab News reported the Reuters story with the same title.

On January 8, 2025, Radio Free Europe published a broader story, which concerns the promotion and appointment of foreign fighters in the Syrian army. In addition, for Jashari, also known as Abu Qatada al-Albani, there is also information that he was promoted to colonel. The news appeared in several other media outlets at the time, but after that, there was no new information about Jashari for over a month.

The Serbian media outlet Informer.rs is reviving the Jashari topic, publishing an article titled “An Albanian terrorist has been appointed to the new government of Syria: He was under US sanctions due to terrorism, and now he is threatening Serbia (video).”

They state in the title and subtitle that the individual in question has been given a position in the new Syrian government, without providing any further details or clarification. Informer, by the way, approaches the topic from the perspective of Kosovo, quoting Jashari’s recent statement that Pristina’s request for recognition of Kosovo by the new Syrian authorities was improperly submitted by the Minister of Local-Self Government, rather than by the Prime Minister or President.

Informer itself ultimately deviates from the claim made in the title and subtitle, quoting Jashari, or rather Al-Albani from December 28, 2024, stating that he was promoted to the rank of colonel.

The news from Informer.rs is uncritically sourced by Macedonian online media outlets and has also been published by a national television station. In this coverage, the phrase “received a place in the new Syrian government” is translated as “minister.” As a result, misleading headlines have flooded the media landscape—and, by extension, social networks, with the exception of “Truthmeter.mk” and “Meta.mk,” which published the fact-check.

*(Note: The text was finalized at noon on 28.02.2025)