President Donald Trump’s administration and Ukraine plan to sign the much-debated minerals deal following a disastrous Oval Office meeting Friday in which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was dismissed from the building, four people familiar with the situation said on Tuesday.
Trump has told his advisers that he wants to announce the agreement in his address to Congress on Tuesday evening, three of the sources said, cautioning that the deal had yet to be signed and the situation could change.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ukraine’s presidential administration in Kyiv and the Ukrainian embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The deal was put on hold on Friday after a contentious Oval Office meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that resulted in the Ukrainian leader’s swift departure from the White House. Zelenskyy had traveled to Washington to sign the deal.
In that meeting, Trump and Vice President JD Vance berated Zelenskyy, telling him he should thank the U.S. for its support rather than asking for additional aid in front of the U.S. media.
“You’re gambling with World War III,” Trump said.