The Economist: Russia Offered Trump A $12 Trillion Deal

• 18.02.2026, 11:58

A Nobel Peace Prize was predicted for its realization.

Before Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin met in Alaska last year, Russia prepared for Trump the "largest agreement" between the two countries on economic cooperation. A note from the Russian Security Council said that the implementation of the agreement could even bring both presidents Nobel Prizes.

The talks discussed large-scale business projects, including resource extraction in the Arctic and the development of rare-earth metal deposits. This is reported by The Economist.

In particular, Russia offered the United States a package of deals worth $12 trillion in exchange for sanctions relief.

Russian Investment Fund head Kirill Dmitriev met with Trump's special envoy Steve Whitkoff at least nine times, and Trump family representatives negotiated the acquisition of stakes in Russian energy assets.

The proposals included oil and gas projects in the Arctic, a nuclear-powered data center, a tunnel under the Bering Strait and the return of $5 billion worth of Exxon Mobil assets.

The Russian Security Council document described a "treasure trove of Arctic and northern resources" that sovereign and private funds from the U.S. and other countries planned to tap into.

As the publication notes, most of the proposals are designed to interest Trump, and the actual economic benefits are much smaller.

The Economist estimates that even optimistic scenarios allow U.S. companies to receive only about $340 billion in annual flows, not trillions of dollars.

The publication emphasizes that agreeing to the deal could help rebuild the Russian economy and set the stage for new conflicts, so any U.S. president would have to evaluate the proposal coldly and watch out for national interests.