The recent negotiations between the United States and Ukraine mainly involve two areas: one is about mining cooperation, and the other is the ceasefire issue between Russia and Ukraine, but both sides are quite complicated.
First, let's talk about mining cooperation: The United States has been discussing the development of mineral resources with Ukraine since the end of February this year. Ukraine has said that an agreement will be signed soon, possibly focusing on minerals worth hundreds of billions of dollars in areas occupied by Russia. Trump had previously mentioned using Ukraine's rare earth resources in exchange for U.S. aid, and now it seems he may want to use this to pressure Ukraine to make concessions in ceasefire negotiations.
The ceasefire negotiations are more troublesome: The United States is privately talking to Russia, excluding Europe from participation, claiming to consider European interests, but European countries are furious. France and Finland plan to hold their own summit to discuss the matter. Trump and Putin recently had a phone call saying they want to meet, possibly in Saudi Arabia, to continue discussing ceasefire conditions, such as lifting sanctions and how to divide territory. However, Ukraine is unhappy about being sidelined in the negotiations; Zelensky has stated the need to build a European army. Meanwhile, Russia insists that the new government after Ukraine's elections at the end of the year must sign the agreement.
The biggest concern now is that Europe fears being sold out by the United States—America might accept Russia's occupation of part of the territory, creating a “frozen conflict,” which would collapse Europe's security arrangement. Both sides are still at odds: the U.S. might ease sanctions against Russia, while the EU has just imposed new sanctions. In short, the current situation is one of fighting while negotiating, with the mineral agreement becoming a bargaining chip for the U.S. to compel Ukraine to compromise, but whether an agreement can ultimately be reached depends on how the U.S. and Russia negotiate their leverage.