Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday said President Trump is “very close” to making a deal to gain access to Ukraine’s critical minerals as he pushes to end the war with Russia, referencing the Philadelphia Eagle’s signature “tush push” strategy.
“My last indication was that it was very close to the finish line. We were on the … not even the one-yard line. We were at the half-yard line, almost like when the Eagles pushed the quarterback across,” Rubio told Fox News, noting the Super Bowl champion’s play, where the quarterback is physically pushed a few yards to score a touchdown.
“The tush push thing,” he added. “So, it’s close and it’s good.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is heading to Washington, D.C. in the coming days to talk about the negotiations with Russia to end the three-year war.
Trump has largely sidelined Zelensky and Ukraine in the talks, as Rubio met with Russian officials last week. Trump slammed the Ukrainian leader over the war, calling him a dictator.
Trump on Tuesday told reporters that he heard Zelensky would be visiting the U.S. and said it was “certainly” okay if he wanted to come to Washington.
U.S. officials say the minerals deal would benefit Ukraine because it would serve as an incentive to provide security guarantees for the country in peace talks.
“This is a good deal for Ukraine. I mean, the United States working with them … after the conflict to be able to utilize their natural resources, not just to pay back the American taxpayer but to develop the Ukrainian economy,” Rubio said.
Rubio said the security guarantee part of the deal is that the U.S. is now Ukraine’s partner “in something important.”
“People keep using the term ‘security guarantees,’ what Ukraine needs really is a deterrent,” Rubio said. “They need to make it costly for anyone to come after them again in the future.”
