President Donald Trump's administration hailed the signing of a new minerals deal with Ukraine as a “historic partnership” that will generate profits for both nations and strengthen Mr Trump's hand in negotiations with Russia.
Administration officials said the agreement, which was signed on Wednesday, grants the US preferential access to new Ukrainian minerals and natural resources licences. It also establishes an equal joint investment fund that would fund Ukraine's reconstruction as part of a US effort to end the war with Russia.
“This is not just rare critical minerals and many other items that have been highlighted in conversations around this partnership,” a senior US administration official told journalists on a call.
“This partnership is going to be fundamental to the peace process that the President is leading, because it sends a strong message to Russia that the United States has been in the game and has committed to Ukraine's long-term success.”
According to Ukrainian officials, the version of the deal signed on Wednesday is far more beneficial to Ukraine than previous versions, which they said reduced Kyiv to a junior partner and gave Washington unprecedented rights to the country’s resources.
Another US official explained that the pact has three agreements, a framework deal and two technical accords, and that they expect Ukraine's parliament to ratify the agreement next week.
Under the agreement, the US and Ukraine would each receive 50 per cent of royalties, licence fees and other revenue from the extraction of Ukrainian natural resources, including rare earth minerals, as well as oil and gas, the White House said.
Officials have not mentioned any explicit security guarantees in regard to any potential aggression from Russia, a demand that Ukraine had initially insisted on. The pact comes following the fraying of ties between Washington and Kyiv.
Mr Trump, who took office in January, campaigned on a promise to bring a swift end to the war in Ukraine and end US military aid. Overturning decades of US foreign policy, he has sought closer relations with Russia and berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on social media as well as in the Oval Office during an official visit.
The US President has argued that his predecessor, Joe Biden, grossly overspent American taxpayers' funds on supporting Ukraine throughout the war, now more than three years old. He pitched the minerals deal as a “payback” for military assistance.
“We'll move it and operationalise it as fast as we possibly can,” White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller said during a news briefing. “It's meant to pay back the United States, it is the key point for the hundreds of billions of dollars that our taxpayers have spent subsidising the war in Ukraine.”
Mr Trump's tone has shifted on Mr Putin in recent weeks, with the US President saying he was not happy with continued Russian missile and drone strikes on Kyiv and elsewhere, even while peace talks were in progress.
State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said the deal would have a long-term positive impact for Ukrainians
“This deal that has just been signed is so critical in that it is going to be generational and it will make the difference for Ukraine at every stage,” she told reporters. "[It] provides a kind of national security that nothing else really could when it comes to the way the world views Ukraine."
But”the deal does not mention any explicit security guarantees to deter future Russian aggression that Ukraine has long insisted on. The US assumes that the mere presence of American workers in Ukraine will be enough to deter an attack by Russia on their location.
The fund will be supported by the government through the US International Development Finance Corporation agency, which Ukraine hopes will attract investment and technology from American and European countries.
Trump administration officials initially pushed for a deal in which Washington would receive $500 billion in profits from exploited minerals as compensation for its wartime support.
But Mr Zelenskyy rejected the offer, saying he would not sign off on an agreement “that will be paid off by 10 generations of Ukrainians.”
Any financial payoff from the minerals deal could take a decade or longer as investors face many hurdles to getting new mines into production in the war-ravaged country.
Developing mines that produce strategically important minerals in countries with established mining sectors such as Canada and Australia can take 10 to 20 years, mining consultants told Reuters.
Smart words at Make Smart Cool
Make Smart Cool is not your usual festival. Dubbed “edutainment” by organisers Najahi Events, Make Smart Cool aims to inspire its youthful target audience through a mix of interactive presentation by social media influencers and a concert finale featuring Example with DJ Wire. Here are some of the speakers sharing their inspiration and experiences on the night.
Prince Ea
With his social media videos accumulating more half a billion views, the American motivational speaker is hot on the college circuit in the US, with talks that focus on the many ways to generate passion and motivation when it comes to learning.
Khalid Al Ameri
The Emirati columnist and presenter is much loved by local youth, with writings and presentations about education, entrepreneurship and family balance. His lectures on career and personal development are sought after by the education and business sector.
Ben Ouattara
Born to an Ivorian father and German mother, the Dubai-based fitness instructor and motivational speaker is all about conquering fears and insecurities. His talk focuses on the need to gain emotional and physical fitness when facing life’s challenges. As well managing his film production company, Ouattara is one of the official ambassadors of Dubai Expo2020.
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
