The 100-year partnership agreement between Ukraine and the UK was never “secret”. The text of this document is easily available in open sources. Moreover, there is nothing in it that contradicts the agreement between Ukraine and the US on rare earth metals. Additionally, it was the US and the Trump administration, not Ukraine, that initiated the signing of the bilateral metals agreement – several weeks after the deal between Kyiv and London. Thus, neither Ukraine nor Zelenskyy “deceived” America; rather, the United States itself proposed such a deal and its terms to Ukraine.
Social media and various websites are spreading claims that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy secretly signed a 100-year resource deal with the UK. “At the same time, he was negotiating with the US, deceiving them despite his previous commitments to Britain – essentially manipulating both sides. This continued until, as US intelligence officer Anthony Shaffer claims, Trump realized he was being deceived,” the social media posts read. This refers to the US-Ukraine agreement on rare earth metals.
In fact, this claim is false. First of all, the 100-year partnership agreement between Ukraine and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is not and has never been “secret,” as claimed on social media. On the day of its signing – January 16, 2025 – many media outlets reported on the event, and the full text of the document can be found on the official website of the President of Ukraine. Therefore, Donald Trump could not have been unaware of the agreement, as its signing was public. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who was in Kyiv at the time, called the document “historic”.
Second, there is nothing in the Ukraine-UK agreement that contradicts the U.S.-Ukraine agreement on rare earth metals referenced in these fake reports. The document primarily covers key areas of cooperation – from Kyiv’s main priority of strengthening defense capabilities to countering foreign information manipulation and interference, climate protection and socio-cultural ties. The introduction mentions London’s support for Ukraine’s NATO membership, reforms and anti-corruption efforts, according to United24.
The main part of the agreement consists of 14 articles, covering topics such as strengthening defense capabilities, enhancing security and consensus on Ukraine’s NATO membership, developing partnerships in maritime security, boosting economic and trade cooperation, cooperation in energy, climate and transition to clean energy, strengthening justice and accountability mechanisms, and countering foreign information manipulation and interference, as noted by European Pravda. Thus, the agreement with the UK has nothing to do with the rare earth metals deal.
Moreover, it was the US and the Trump administration, not Ukraine, that initiated the signing of a bilateral rare earths deal with Ukraine-just weeks after the signing of the 100-year agreement between the UK and Ukraine. The U.S. justified such a deal by arguing that American business presence in Ukraine would serve as a reliable security guarantee against another Russian invasion. In the initial version of the agreement, the US also demanded that Ukraine contribute $500 billion to an investment fund as compensation for the American military aid provided to Kyiv. Therefore, it was not Ukraine and Zelenskyy playing a “double game,” but rather the US itself that proposed such a deal and its terms to Kyiv.
These false narratives are spread primarily to discredit Ukraine and its government on the international stage and undermine Kyiv’s support from its potential partners. StopFake continues to debunk similar false claims in pieces such as Fake: Pro-Ukrainian Rallies in the US Organized by Criminal Gangs and Fake: Dish Called “Smash Trump” Appeared in Dnipro Café.
