The United States and Ukraine are trying to hammer out a natural resources agreement that would give Washington access to Kyiv’s untapped mineral riches in exchange for investments and what Ukraine hopes would be concrete security guarantees.

The progress came after days of negotiations and pressure from Washington to reach a deal, which would propel an end to Ukraine’s brutal war with Russia.

"The reality is that most lithium deposits in Ukraine were identified in the Soviet era and we haven't had any real updates or exploration for many years," said Federico Gay, anal