Russia's Medvedev says Ukraine minerals deal means Trump has forced Kyiv to pay for US aid

Senior Russian security official Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday that the signing of a minerals deal between Ukraine and the United States meant U.S. President Donald Trump had forced Kyiv to pay for future U.S. military aid. The deal, signed in Washington on Wednesday, will give the United States preferential access to new Ukrainian minerals deals and fund investment in Ukraine's reconstruction. The Kyiv Post, citing diplomatic sources, said the Trump administration had also told Congress on Wednesday of its intention to green-light the export of defence-related products to Ukraine through direct commercial sales of $50 million or more, the first step of its kind since Trump's White House return.