America First Or Family First? Trump's $1.6 Billion Kazakhstan Mining Deal Could Put Profits In His Sons' Hands

Published 29 June 2026 · us

America First Or Family? Trump's $1.6 Billion Kazakhstan Mining Deal Could Put Profits In His Sons' Hands Published By, Last Updated: June 29, 2026, 07:31

America First Or Family? Trump's $1.6 Billion Kazakhstan Mining Deal Could Put Profits In His Sons' Hands Published By, Last Updated: June 29, 2026, 07:31 IST A report has raised conflict-of-interest questions after businesses linked to President Donald Trump's sons became involved in a US-backed Kazakhstan mining project. Rapid Read US President Donald Trump with sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump. (Photo: X) President Donald Trump’s “America First" agenda also good for family business? A major US-backed mining agreement in Kazakhstan has come under scrutiny after The New York Times reported that businesses linked to the families of President Donald Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick could benefit from the project while the Trump administration considers potential federal financing. According to the report, the agreement gives an American company, Kaz Resources, access to one of the world’s largest untapped tungsten deposits in Kazakhstan. Tungsten is considered a strategic mineral used in missile warheads, fighter aircraft, semiconductors and other defence-related technologies. Ahead of the agreement, the Trump administration approved preliminary applications for up to $1.6 billion in federal financing for the project. The report said the deal was finalised after discussions involving President Trump, Commerce Secretary Lutnick and Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Investment links with Trump’s family The New York Times reported that within weeks of negotiations in New York, investors associated with Dominari Securities, a financial firm operating from Trump Tower and partly owned by Donald Trump Jr.

and Eric Trump, acquired a 20 per cent stake in a corporate entity linked to the Kazakhstan mining venture. Around the same period, Cantor Fitzgerald, the investment firm controlled by the Lutnick family and overseen by Commerce Secretary Lutnick’s sons Brandon and Kyle Lutnick, helped another investor involved in the project raise $210 million in fresh capital. The newspaper said the Kazakhstan agreement was signed on November 6, six days after the investment involving the Trump sons and their business partners. According to the report, businesses connected to either the Trump family or the Lutnick family have financial ties with at least 14 companies working on critical minerals projects that have received or are seeking support from the federal government. The total value of funding approved or under consideration for these companies exceeds $8.9 billion, the newspaper said. Trump administration rejects allegations However, the White House and the Commerce Department rejected suggestions that government decisions had been influenced by family business interests. White House spokesperson Kush Desai told The New York Times that the administration’s decisions were guided solely by America’s national interest. “The only special interest guiding the Trump administration’s decision-making is the best interest of the American people," Desai said, adding that securing America’s critical supply chains remained a top priority. The Commerce Department also said Howard Lutnick had sold his ownership stake in Cantor Fitzgerald and that neither he nor department officials had discussed rare-earth mining business with the investment firm.