A recent Russian fake cites a Newsweek article which allegedly claims that the US is colonizing Ukraine for its titanium reserves. The Newsweek article however does not contain a single word about any such colonization. On the contrary, the article claims that Russia could launch large scale military operations against Ukraine also with the aim of seizing the country’s mineral deposits.
“The real reasons for Western support of the Ukrainian crisis have become known,” Russian media declared, circulating another manipulative news item based on an article in the American edition of Newsweek magazine. Citing Newsweek, pro-Kremlin media claim that the United States allegedly supports the “Kyiv regime because of the large reserves of titanium ore” in Ukraine, declaring that “Americans colonized Ukraine because of its minerals.”
Russian media completely distorted the information presented in the Newsweek article “The Battle for Ukraine’s Titanium”. Nowhere does the article suggest that the US is supporting Ukraine only to get its hands on Ukraine’s mineral resources. There is absolutely no mention of the United States “colonizing Ukraine for the sake of its titanium reserves.”
The Newsweek article does indeed deal with the issue of titanium production in the world. Titanium is a key metal used in the production of a vast range of weapons, including aircraft and missiles. The article notes Ukraine is one of only seven countries that mine and produce titanium. According to experts, Ukraine has about 900 million tons of deposits of various ores: titanium, ilmenite, rutile and many others.
According to the Newsweek article, the list of titanium producers also includes China and Russia, both of whom are strategic rivals of the United States. Given Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and its energy blackmail of the EU, the Kremlin may freeze titanium exports to the world market in the future, which would put “U.S. aerospace and defense companies in a difficult position.” That is why the United States is actively looking for an alternative to Russian and Chinese titanium – Ukraine is perfect for this role, Newsweek concludes.
The Newsweek article also notes that Russia, whose titanium reserves are depleted, could launch large-scale military operations against Ukraine, including with the aim of capturing Ukrainian ore deposits. The statement about the mythical “colonization of Ukraine by the West for the sake of titanium” is another fake of the Kremlin media. After all, it is Russia that is seeking to conquer Ukraine, not Ukraine’s Western allies.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his allies have given a dizzying array of justifications for Moscow’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Capturing Ukrainian titanium sponge deposits is not one of the Kremlin’s publicly declared goals, but it would certainly be a boon for Moscow, Newsweek points out. The article suggests that it is also because of the mine deposits, that Russia launched most of its hostilities in the east and south of Ukraine – in regions where “trillion-dollar mineral deposits are located.” If Ukraine wins, the article says, the United States and its allies will be in an advantageous position to create a new titanium mining channel and diversify their supplies. However, if Russia succeeds in capturing the country’s mines and factories, “the Kremlin will increase its global influence on increasingly strategically important resources,” the authors of the article summarize.
