Ukraine’s mineral riches could bankroll its postwar future. But what does Trump’s deal really mean? [Video]

The giant excavator working in the quarry near the central Ukrainian town of Zhytomyr rarely stops scooping, removing earth and precious titanium ore 24 hours a day. 

“Ukraine possesses approximately 20 per cent of the world’s titanium reserves,” operations manager Dmytro Holik told CBC News, as the noise of the excavator blared in the distance. 

“I am very interested that Ukraine can become a global or European titanium hub.”

On that point, Holik and U.S. President Donald Trump would appear to share common ground.

After weeks of painful — and often public — negotiations between American and Ukrainian officials, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to arrive in Washington on Friday to formally sign a natural resources pact with Trump.

Yet the Ukrainian leader is sounding rather unclear about what exactly he and Trump have agreed to. 

“This deal could be a great success, or it could pass quietly,” Zelenskyy told …