Tag: natural resources

US government to invest $96 million in Ukraine’s minerals

The US government on Sept 17 pledged US$75 million (S$96 million) to kick-start a landmark deal to invest in Ukraine’s vast mineral reserves, a commitment that will ease fears in Kyiv that the Trump administration is walking away from the war-torn country.

When  an agreement in spring granted the US a stake in Ukraine’s critical minerals, Kyiv cast it as a way to lock in American support through business ties.

President Donald Trump has made it clear that he would no longer give US money to Ukraine for the war effort, leaving Kyiv scrambling to retain whatever American engagement it could.

Many observers doubted that the deal could draw US investment while the fighting continues. But the new American pledge and a matching commitment by the Ukrainian government will bring a fund created under the agreement to US$150 million.

The flow of US government money into Ukraine’s minerals, hydrocarbons and related infrastructure could help reassure private investors and attract badly needed capital to sustain the country’s war economy.

It also shows the new mercantile nature of the US-Ukrainian alliance under Mr Trump.

While the Biden administration spent tens of billions of dollars to aid Kyiv, Washington now focuses on opportunities to profit through investments and sales. It provides weapons to Ukraine only through purchases facilitated by a Nato-backed procurement system that uses European funds.

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Operation “Let’s Grab The Oil”

I don’t know if you remember it, but last year I hypothesized that the Trump administration would focus their attention on a North/South axis of power… and less on an East/West.

Part of this is down to the fact the US Military is stretched globally, and likely no small part comes down to the fact that their ability to project power has for decades been reliant on their naval capabilities. These are now rendered obsolete due to the Russian missiles which can sink them and are unstoppable. All parties know this, though it remains to be seen whether US hubris may ignore it nonetheless.

In any event, focusing on the easy prey — the US own backyard, so to speak. Canada (remember the comments about “Governor Trudeau?”) and the political pressure on Mexico. Then there is the strong allegiance now with Argentina and the pressure being placed on Brazil, the focus on Panama — the canal being all important, of course. All of this is due to a North/South pivot.

So included in this is, of course, Venezuela.

The Escalating Political Showdown: Trump vs. Maduro Over Venezuela’s Black Gold

The relationship between the Donald and Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has devolved into one of the most hilarious and contentious international political feuds of recent years, with both leaders engaging in increasingly hostile rhetoric. Of course, it’s all theatre — a sideshow masking the real prize: the struggle over Venezuela’s vast oil reserves, the largest proven reserves in the world.

Why, for example, is Don not blabbing about Costa Rica or Honduras or any other country in the region?

The Bounty That Started It All

Back in March of 2020 the US administration placed a $15 million bounty on Maduro’s head through the DEA’s “Narcotics Rewards Program.” They accused Maduro and other Venezuelan officials of “narco-terrorism” and drug trafficking conspiracy charges. This bounty, along with similar rewards for other Venezuelan officials totaling over $55 million, marked the first time the United States had placed such a substantial price on a sitting head of state.

The US justified this action by claiming that Maduro’s regime had transformed Venezuela into a “criminal enterprise” that facilitated drug trafficking throughout the Western Hemisphere. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at the time declared that the Venezuelan government had become “one of the most corrupt and destructive forces in the Western Hemisphere.”

In reality, the CIA doesn’t like competition, but anyway…

Maduro’s Counterattack: The Epstein Files Gambit

Maduro’s response was swift and inflammatory. Taking to his official social media accounts, he pointed out who Trump pays allegiance to (Mossad) and suggested a release of the Epstein files. It’s all highly entertaining… except if you’re a Venezuelan, of course, wondering if Trump drops a “big beautiful bomb” on your head.

The Prize: Venezuela’s Oil Wealth

Behind this political theatre lies the true source of tension: Venezuela’s staggering oil reserves. According to OPEC data, Venezuela possesses approximately 303.8 billion barrels of proven oil reserves — roughly 18% of the world’s total. This makes Venezuela’s reserves larger than those of Saudi Arabia (267 billion barrels) and represents more oil than the combined reserves of Iraq, Iran, and Kuwait.

Despite this wealth, Venezuela’s oil production has plummeted from over 3 million barrels per day in the 1990s to barely 800,000 barrels per day by 2020, largely due to mismanagement, corruption, and international sanctions.

The Trump administration’s sanctions effectively cut off Venezuela’s access to US refineries and financial systems, costing the country an estimated $116 billion between 2017 and 2020. So there’s definitely no love lost there.

Social Media War

The conflict has played out extensively on social media platforms, with both leaders using their accounts to escalate tensions. Trump frequently posted on Truth Social about Venezuela, calling Maduro a “dictator” and claiming that “Venezuela’s oil belongs to its people, not to corrupt narco-terrorists.”

Meanwhile, Maduro has used his platforms to portray himself as a victim of “Yankee imperialism,” posting: “They want our oil, our gold, our resources. But the Bolivarian Revolution will never surrender to the gringo empire.”

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Trump to NATO nations: ‘STOP BUYING OIL FROM RUSSIA’

President Donald Trump urged all NATO countries to stop buying oil from Russia, believing it would help end the war in Ukraine.

On Saturday, the president posted an excerpt from a letter he had sent to all NATO nations on X.

“I am ready to do major sanctions on Russia when all NATO nations have agreed, and started, to so the same thing, and when all NATO nations STOP BUYING OIL FROM RUSSIA,” Trump wrote, adding that, “the purchase of Russian oil, by some (countries), has been shocking!”

NATO is comprised of 32 member countries. Of these, Turkey is the third largest buyer of Russian oil, behind China and India, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). The country spent $62.1 billion on Russian oil from January 2023 to July 2025.

Hungary and Slovakia are also Russian oil customers, according to the same study.

According to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, France, Belgium and Spain accounted for approximately 85% of all Russian liquid natural gas imports in 2024.

Trump believes that buying fossil fuels from Russia “greatly weakens your negotiating position, and bargaining power over Russia.”

The president put the ball in NATO’s court, adding that he is “ready to ‘go’” when they are.

“I believe that this, plus NATO, as a group, placing 50% to 100% TARIFFS ON CHINA, to be fully withdrawn after the WAR with Russia and Ukraine is ended, will also be of great help in ENDING this deadly, but RIDICULOUS, WAR,” Trump stated.

China is the largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels, having spent $158.7 billion on oil from January 2023 to July 2025, according to CREA.

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The Power Of Siberia 2 Pipeline Deal Signifies The Failure Of Trump’s Eurasian Grand Strategy

Trump’s escalatory signals in Ukraine, the Indo-US split that he induced, and the attendant alleviation of the Sino-Indo security dilemma freed Russia up to clinch the long-negotiated Power of Siberia 2 deal…

Trump’s Eurasian grand strategy has sought to preemptively avert Russia’s potentially disproportionate dependence on China in order to avoid having its natural resources turbocharge the superpower trajectory of the US’ only systemic rival. In pursuit of this, the US envisaged entering into a resource-centric strategic partnership with Russia upon the end of the Ukrainian Conflict, expecting that this shared goal would incentivize Putin into agreeing to significant territorial and/or security concessions.

Trump’s unwillingness or inability to coerce Zelensky into any of Putin’s demanded concessions paired with increasingly concerning reports about plans to deploy NATO to Ukraine to spook Putin into ditching his balancing act and pivoting to China. The successful clinching of their long-negotiated deal over the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline, which will nearly double Russia’s gas exports to China to ~100 bcm a year and at a cheaper price than the EU receives, signifies the failure of Trump’s Eurasian grand strategy.

Putin might have held out for longer had Trump not inadvertently catalyzed the incipient Sino-Indo rapprochement via his hypocritically punitive tariffs that aim to derail India’s rise as a Great Power. That spooked India into patching up its ties with China, which alleviated their security dilemma that the US was exploiting to divide-and-rule them. This in turn reduced India’s worries about closer Russian-Chinese energy cooperation that it previously feared could lead to Russia becoming China’s junior partner.

It was never officially voiced, but astute observers and those who’ve talked to Indian thinkers know that India was worried that China might leverage its influence over Russia to get it to curtail or cut off military exports to India, therefore giving China a pivotal edge in their border dispute. The Trump-induced Indo-US split and attendant alleviation of the Sino-Indo security dilemma freed Russia up to clinch the Power of Siberia 2 deal without fear of spooking India into the US’ arms and thus dividing-and-ruling Eurasia.

The growing convergence between BRICS and the SCO, which aim to gradually reform global governance via their complementary efforts to accelerate multipolar processes, is due in no small part to India’s embrace of both in response to new strategic threats from the US. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first visit to China in seven years to attend the SCO Leaders’ Summit, during which time he held an important bilateral meeting with President Xi Jinping, is expected to lead to a new normal in Sino-Indo ties.

The roots of their tensions haven’t been resolved, but Russia expects that they’ll now be better managed, ergo why it clinched its deal with China over the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline right after also concluding that the US won’t try to help it obtain any of what it wants from Ukraine. To review, Trump signaled escalatory intent in Ukraine reportedly as the quid pro quo for the US-EU trade deal and then Sino-Indo ties improved as Indo-US ones worsened, thus making Power of Siberia 2 politically possible.

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UK sucking resources out of Ukraine – Moscow

The British establishment views Ukraine as a source of cheap resources that can help alleviate the UK’s ongoing economic problems, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said.

Such a predatory attitude is typical of London, Zakharova said in an exclusive interview with RT on Wednesday.

Moscow considers the UK one of the main actors fueling the Ukraine conflict, claiming it collaborates with the EU to undermine diplomatic efforts made by US President Donald Trump.

“Britain has a history of aggressive colonialism and imperialism toward resource-rich countries,” she stated. “Ukraine holds significant potential in this regard, and Britain views it as a means of enrichment – or rather a lifeline given the current state of Western European economies.”

“London perceives Ukraine as merely a feeding trough, both now and in the future, from which it can extract essentially free minerals and refine them,” she added.

The Ukrainian leadership is not acting in the interests of its citizens, Zakharova claimed, but instead follows directives from “NATO, Western European elites, and local self-interested groups.”

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China’s Grip On Critical Minerals Disrupts U.S. Defense Supply Chain

In 2023, Raytheon CEO Greg Hayes warned that Beijing effectively has the US military’s supply chain by the balls, thanks to America’s reliance on rare earths and other materials which either come from, or are processed in, China. 

According to Hayes, Raytheon has “several thousand suppliers in China,” because of which “decoupling … is impossible.“

“We can de-risk but not decouple,” he told the Financial Times, adding that he thinks this is the case “for everybody.”

“Think about the $500bn of trade that goes from China to the US every year. More than 95 per cent of rare earth materials or metals come from, or are processed in, China. There is no alternative,” he said. 

Fast forward two years later – and China’s recent curbs on the export of critical minerals are rippling through the U.S. defense supply chain, slowing production schedules and sending manufacturers on a global search for scarce materials needed in everything from munitions to fighter jets.

In short, amid a surge in U.S.-China trade tensions earlier this year, Beijing tightened its control over rare earth exports. Those shipments resumed after the Trump administration reached a set of trade concessions in June, however China has kept a firm hold on materials destined for defense use. Accounting for roughly 90 percent of the world’s rare earth output – and dominating the supply of other strategic minerals – China has also barred the sale of germanium, gallium and antimony to the United States since December. The three metals are essential for bullet hardening, night-vision optics and other military applications, the WSJ reports.

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Russia captures over 100-acre lithium reserve, one of Europe’s biggest ‘white gold’ sites

Russian forces have seized control of a key lithium-rich zone near the village of Shevchenko in Ukraine’s Donetsk region.

The site, located roughly 2 miles (3 km) from the border of Dnipropetrovsk oblast, spans approximately 100 acres (40 hectares) and contains one of the largest lithium reserves in Europe, according to a report by The New York Times. 

One of Europe’s richest lithium sites

The Shevchenko deposit lies about 6 miles (10 km) from Velyka Novosilka, a town that fell to Russian forces in January. 

Though the village holds little tactical value, its subsurface resources are of growing strategic significance. 

Lithium, often called “white gold,” is a critical input for producing electric vehicle batteries, aerospace alloys, energy storage systems, and electronics.

With global demand for lithium rising parallel with decarbonization efforts and military modernization programs, control over such reserves offers more than a battlefield advantage. 

It provides long-term leverage over industrial supply chains. In 2022, lithium prices peaked at over $80,000 per metric ton. 

As of June 27, 2025, the price in China stands at approximately $8,500 per ton, down significantly, yet still commercially and strategically relevant, according to Defence Blog.

The Russian occupation of the Shevchenko site allows Moscow to further consolidate its hold over Ukraine’s natural resources. 

The war shows a pattern of attacks on military targets and important resources like energy, minerals, and industry.

These attacks can hurt Ukraine’s recovery after the war and may impact future investments from the West.

Before the invasion, the Shevchenko area had attracted foreign interest and was under consideration for development by Ukrainian state agencies aiming to reduce dependence on imported raw materials.

Analysts suggest the seizure may form part of a larger Russian campaign to dominate resource corridors and inhibit Ukraine’s access to domestic revenue streams. 

With critical mineral extraction sites under Russian control, Ukraine faces new obstacles in rebuilding its industrial base, even as reconstruction frameworks gain international support.

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Rare Earth Startups Say Without Subsidies and Support, US Can’t Shake China’s Control

Without a federally supported market and strategic reserve stockpile, the United States will remain reliant on China for critical minerals and rare earth refining, experts told a House panel during two-plus hours of testimony on June 24 that exposed how vulnerable the global economy and the nation’s defense is to the whims of the Chinese Communist Party.

Even with swift deregulation, permitting reform, and rapid recycling ramp-up, they warned, it will take years of government support to untether domestic manufacturing from a supply chain China has strategically built for decades.

“Over the years it’s taken for us to do nothing, the Chinese have dominated. They and their government have been extremely supportive of their ability to create world dominance in this, and it was part of a strategy,” U.S. Critical Materials Executive Director Harvey Kaye said during the hearing before the House Small Business Committee.

This glaring vulnerability is confirmed by the Congressional Research Service’s April 2024 report documenting the nation’s 100 percent import reliance for 12 of 50 “most critical” minerals, and more than 50 percent import reliance for another 29.

The U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) Mineral Commodity Summaries January 2025 report paints an even scarier picture. Of 31 critical minerals needed to produce everything from iPhones to F-35 fighter jets, the United States cannot domestically source any and can commercially refine only one, beryllium.

China, meanwhile, is the lead source for eight and the near-exclusive provider of 17 minerals needed for a rapidly electrifying economy. China processes two-thirds of the world’s lithium and cobalt, supplying 60 percent to 90 percent of the world’s processed minerals.

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Natural Gas Projects Reboot After Officials Wake Up To Stark Realities

When the government abuses its powers in pursuit of far-left political goals at the expense of commonsense policies, entire states and regions often suffer.

Such was the case in recent years when numerous projects centered on traditional energy were derailed by environmental extremists who leveraged the tools of government to erect roadblock after roadblock. Most famously, the Biden administration canceled the Keystone XL project in 2021, which was designed to carry 830,000 barrels of oil sands crude per day from Alberta to Nebraska.

Rather than play losing hands dealt from stacked decks, frustrated energy companies eventually began pulling the plug on one project after another, all to the detriment of businesses and families. Meanwhile, the government artificially propped up wind and solar projects, promoting energy sources that raided taxpayer wallets and were more expensive, less reliable and less efficient than traditional sources of energy.

Among the natural gas pipeline projects that ground to a halt were the Constitution and the Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) pipelines, both designed to transport natural gas to New York. Activists agitated against the projects, often centering their arguments on supposed clean water concerns and the alleged dangers of fracking. Even though the fracking was happening in Pennsylvania – and the projects had received approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission – New York state officials ultimately caved to the pressure from the far left and denied permits.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) was a leader among the anti-pipeline forces. In 2019, Cuomo had “signed into law the state’s goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050,” as NPR previously reported. Of the pipeline efforts, Cuomo pledged that “any way that we can challenge it, we will.”

After years of costly battles – and in the face of New York regulatory officials and politicians determined to stand in their way – company officials threw their hands in the air and gave up on the Constitution project in 2020, doing the same just a year ago in regard to the NESE pipeline.

Environmental groups were ecstatic. When the Constitution project shut down, Earthjustice staff attorney Moneen Nasmith said, “At this critical moment for our climate, we cannot afford unnecessary fossil fuel projects that will lead to more fracking and exacerbate our climate crisis.”

As evidenced by increasingly frequent blackouts and faulty grid performances, the so-called “alternatives” favored by self-labeled “environmental groups” have proven to be poor substitutes for affordable and reliable traditional energy resources. Among those resources, natural gas leads the way in both cost effectiveness and cleanliness. Natural gas has become increasingly “green” with a low carbon footprint compared to other fossil fuels.

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Closing The Strait Of Hormuz Will Be A Nightmare Scenario For The Global Economy

Our way of life depends on cheap energy.  If you remove cheap energy from the equation, our society will be thrown into a state of chaos.  The Iranians know that closing the Strait of Hormuz is one of the most powerful forms of leverage that they possess, because the world is deeply dependent on the oil that travels through that waterway.  We don’t know exactly how this crisis will play out, because the Strait of Hormuz has never been closed in modern times.  But as I pointed out earlier this month, we were warned that Israel would attack Iran, the global price of oil would rise, and the increase in the price of oil would be blamed on Israel.  And that is precisely what has happened.  Israel has attacked Iran, the global price of oil has been increasing, and many are blaming Israel for what has transpired.  Unfortunately, the truth is that this crisis is just getting started.

On Sunday, it was being reported that the Iranian Parliament “has approved a measure to close the Strait of Hormuz”…

The Iranian Parliament has approved a measure to close the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global oil choke point, after the United States bombed three nuclear sites in Iran, according to Iranian state media on Sunday.

While the Parliament has voted in favor of closing the strait, the final decision rests with the country’s Supreme National Security Council, according to state media.

Of course the Iranian Parliament never would have held this vote if the Supreme National Security Council had not already decided what it was going to do.

At a time when the regime is under threat, there is no way that we are going to be shown any signs of disunity among Iranian leaders.

So what does this mean?

It means that the price of oil is going to go higher.

A lot higher.

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