Last week, Russian military forces seized a valuable lithium field in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, the latest success of Moscow’s grinding summer offensive.
The lithium deposit in question is considered rather small by industry analysts, but is said to be a desirable prize nonetheless due to the concentration and high-quality of its ore. In other words, it is just the kind of asset that the Trump administration seemed eager to exploit when it signed its much heralded minerals agreement with Ukraine earlier this year.
The response from Washington? Crickets. The loss attracted no notable reaction from President Donald Trump or his advisers. Ukraine and its backers, who had hoped that the deal would create an abiding and long-term U.S. interest in Ukraine and its security future, will certainly be disappointed.
Despite receiving almost no attention in the United States, however, the episode offers three important insights into the state of the war and the prospects for peace in the near-term.
Read at Responsible Statecraft
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