Trump suggests 'American ownership' of Ukraine nuclear plants to protect them from Russia

Following the collapse of the mineral-rights deal between the U.S. and Ukraine, President Trump is pushing his counterpart to let the U.S. take over its nuclear power plants to protect them from Russia and develop their potential.

After Trump's call with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky Wednesday, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Secretary of State Marco Rubio shared Trump's offer, saying "American ownership of those plants would be the best protection for that infrastructure and support for Ukrainian energy infrastructure."

Zelensky didn't mention either the mineral deal or Trump's power-plant plan in his own statement after the call, The Hill reports, simply saying "Ukraine and the United States should continue working together to achieve a real end to the war and lasting peace," which "can be achieved this year."

The White House has "moved beyond the economic mineral deal" and is "now focused on a long-term peace agreement," press secretary Karoline Leavitt told the New York Post Wednesday.

The nuclear plant Zaporizhzhya is especially interesting to the White House because it's "on the border of Russian-occupied territory," the Post said.