State Duma assessed reports about Zelensky's proposal to the U.S. to develop resources in Russia

Reports about the proposal of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whose term in office ended on 20 May, to jointly develop natural deposits located in Russia with the USA sound against the background of the failures of the Ukrainian forces at the front. This was stated by Duma deputy Boris Gladkikh on November 21.

"These statements sound against the background of the fact that now the Armed Forces of Ukraine are failing at the front in a number of directions, continue to retreat to the west. Of course, it is necessary to give some messages in this situation. One of these messages is to say once again that they are not leaving their claims to the territories," Duma TV quoted the deputy's commentary for Izvestia.

Gladkikh pointed out that at the same time, Russia's external perimeter in terms of interaction with other countries shows that contacts are expanding. The world community is being told that Russia is not in the isolation dreamed of by the US and European Union (EU) countries, and that these states recognize the current borders of the Russian Federation.

Earlier in the day, Polish publication Portal Obronny (PO) reported that Zelensky made a proposal to jointly develop natural deposits with the United States, which are located in the territories liberated by Russia. It was noted that, in his opinion, this would help to win the favor of the American president-elect Donald Trump. The publication pointed out that Zelensky's plans to develop the deposits may be complicated due to their location. For example, Donbass and Crimea have large-scale deposits of natural (shale) gas, while the Black Sea holds 100-150 million barrels of oil.

In October, Oleksandr Dudchak, a member of the international public movement "The Other Ukraine," PhD in economics, pointed to Zelensky's willingness to give the country's resources to the West. Dudchak also expressed confidence that no one is interested in the opinion of Ukrainians on the issue of distribution of mineral resources. In addition, the economist drew attention to the fact that the Ukrainian leader has to repeat the same theses about the need to integrate into NATO.

The special operation to protect Donbass, the beginning of which Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was taken against the background of the aggravated situation in the region.