The United States has discovered nearly $1 trillion in untapped mineral deposits in Afghanistan, far beyond any previously known reserves and enough to fundamentally alter the Afghan economy and perhaps the Afghan war itself, according to senior American government officials.
The previously unknown deposits — including huge veins of iron, copper, cobalt, gold and critical industrial metals like lithium — are so big and include so many minerals that are essential to modern industry that Afghanistan could eventually be transformed into one of the most important mining centers in the world, the United States officials believe.
[…]
“There is stunning potential here,” Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander of the United States Central Command, said in an interview on Saturday. “There are a lot of ifs, of course, but I think potentially it is hugely significant.”
The value of the newly discovered mineral deposits dwarfs the size of Afghanistan’s existing war-bedraggled economy, which is based largely on opium production and narcotics trafficking as well as aid from the United States and other industrialized countries. Afghanistan’s gross domestic product is only about $12 billion.
Dream on. Most countries in Africa have ample natural resources and are still basket cases. Its the HUMAN resource that counts. Japan has almost no natural resources, but an ample supply of Japanese.
They’ve been fighting a war in Baluchistan for 35 years.
Why?
Because the Balochs don’t want resource development on their land and the Pakistanis and a couple of other nearby nations do.
Just because the resources are there doesn’t mean the people who live there want to shift to a resource economy that will fundamentally change their way of life.
Focusing on these resources could fundamentally change the war alright.
It could swing the entire population over to supporting the Taliban.
Yes, many of the opium producers are part of the Afghan government.
A shift to mining production would be ideal, but the dope producers in cabinet would likely still continue to protect their industry.
“Dream on. Most countries in Africa have ample natural resources and are still basket cases. Its the HUMAN resource that counts. Japan has almost no natural resources, but an ample supply of Japanese.”
I agree with tom – the only way that will ever be exploited is by a long occupation by the US running the show.
If the Afgans wanted a modern, capitalist system able to support such a plan it would have happend long ago. It’s time to get out of their and spend the money on true defence efforts.
But I thought Afstan was all about OIL!
Cue the conspiracy theorists in three, two, one…
Yeah, I can hear the “No War for Heavy Metals!” crowd now.
You know shovels and conveyers are tools of Satan.
I’m just waiting till the lefty crowd starts bawling about how the US is there to get this wealth.
You know the kinda Bush & Iraqi oil thingee.
But I suspect they’ll wait thill after bammy goes down in flames in the next election before they start the full court press.
“Afghanistan could become the “Saudi Arabia of lithium,” a key raw material in the manufacture of batteries for laptops and Blackberries.
No Blood for Batteries!
No Blood for Batteries!
/future Leftist-Code Pink protest chant
It almost sounds like someone is claiming the resources, on behalf of America. That’s completely off the wall. The security costs involved in getting this to market would be astronomical. That means the resource belongs to the Afghan people, and eventually, the Taliban. The only way this resource could ever be exploited, is to remove all ‘human’ life from the area.
I read that article. Talk about “forward-looking statements”. Heh.
The other posters are right. There will be no resource development as long as the country is run by muslim savages.
I agree with the comments that observe that the resources will remain unexpolited while the country is ruled by tribal leaders who make their money selling dope and exploiting their people. And there are plenty of resources in Africa that will remain uneploited as long as it is run by tribal leaders who make their money exploiting their people and harvesting aid dollars.
The good thing is that there are plenty of resources in undeveloped parts of the world that will be accessable if needed in the future.
-the findings on which the story was based are online and have been since 2007, courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey.
http://tinyurl.com/38ofpbe
“You know shovels and conveyers are tools of Satan.”
I once saw a placard that stated that ‘idle hands were the work of Stan’.
I have always wondered who Stan was and why he was so evil?
Should we call those unused natural ressources,
Weapons of Mass Construction?…
Sign in the hills of Afghanistan:
“Future Site of Karzai Mining and Corruption”
http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/06/14/say_what_afghanistan_has_1_trillion_in_untapped_mineral_resources
The American EPA would put the hammer to that in a microsecond.
Not that they really care about the environment. It will be done to show their Marxist fist. For power as usual.
After all these folks have no love for their own Nation the USA, indeed thinks it the font of evil. I can see them going neutron bomb over a third World Country being developed. More of Obama’s Marxist soldiers of disarray. From bureaucracy to the military.
JMO
…so is Africa full of minerals …and full of folks that seem to be more interested in wielding machetes.
Screw Afghanistan! Canada’s so full of resources and with such a tiny population, that I doubt there is another nation on earth with so much resource-wealth per capita.
How come us Canuckleheads aren’t all living like Saudi Oil Sheiks and driving those fancy 4×4 4mpg Lamborginis as we rip up and down the back roads?
Whassup?
Rob:
Steady now.
I dunno. This sounds more like an Onion story to me. The good news is that some of our reluctant NATO allies will be falling over themselves to send more engineers, er, troops to help out.
Don’t know how those Afghan women are going to manage another job…..
Given the current “can’t we all just get along” mentality, it is just a matter of time before the Taliban are once again running the show in Afghanistan. If these mineral deposits do indeed exist in massive quantities, does anyone actually believe that the Taliban will put aside their bad behaviour in favour of mining? It’s far more entertaining and far less work to bully the population, sell opium, tear down infrastructure and, of course, take revenge on those who collaborated with the infidels.
It won’t be impossible to develop those resources. Take the oil development in the Persian Gulf as an example.
The NATO countries are broke. Once they’re out of there because, like the USSR of old, they cannot continue the fight, the Chinese will send a million troups, brutely and completely annihilate the Taliban without worrying about how prisoners of war are treated or civilian casualties, they will take over the country and then send milions more chinese to start mining and training the remaining afghans that want to join.
The opium and hashish trade will carry on to supply the west.
Bleeding heart wimps don’t conquer, they just screw up countries and then leave with their tails between their legs.
“Yeah, I can hear the “No War for Heavy Metals!” crowd now.”
Heavy metal? Excellent!
There is nothing wrong with ample supplies of Japanese. Just saying.
It is encouraging to hear that Afghanistan is blessed with such resources. But- as was stated- so is Africa. As long as there are tribal conflicts and utter mad man running the show, those resources will never benefit the Afghans.
It’s a shame.
This well-known and largely irrelevant fact is suddenly in the headlines for a reason.
Well that shall make the Chinese and Russians happy, when they are done raping the Horn of Africa they can send their “Engineers” into Afghanistan.
el gordo
[…….so is Africa full of minerals …and full of folks that seem to be more interested in wielding machetes.] and easilly amused with cheap plastic horns…..
pok
[….This well-known and largely irrelevant fact is suddenly in the headlines for a reason.]
Yeah I thought that too….
Right Honourable Terry Tory
Yeah! You are a regular Nostrodomus…….
Terry Tory and Rose, you are both right on the money. There’s already a Chinese copper mine in the Jalraz Valley called the Aynak deposit. Estimated at worth 3 billion, they’re developing as fast as they can. When do we get to start calling this “neo-colonialism”? It could be the best thing to ever happen to Afstan…
*
here’s a thought… just think about the former rhodesia… you know…
“the breadbasket of africa”.
and what did zimbabweans do when the mugabe hit the fan?
well… mostly they starved.
*
Won’t be developed. That is one of the reasons Prince Charlie gave such a long boring speech praising Islam for being so sympathetic to the environment. No industrial development will happen as Muslims are as in tune with the earth and the environment as he is. And I guess we can believe the guy who still is preaching doom and gloom.
Was the State Department the NYT’s source of this old news? If so, is it a reason to remain longer in Afghanistan, or a justification for pulling out?
Saskatchewan was a perfect example of an anti-buisness state. Sucked the hind tit for years.
A buisness friendly government swept in, and the shackles were removed. They’ll lead the nation.
Afghanistan in a similar situation, only more dangerous anti-buisness players. As long as the Taliban are a factor, they won’t see a dime. It’s up to them.
Minerals will do for Afghanistan what oil has done for Nigeria.
iron doesn’t occur in veins.
The Chinese are already in Afghanistan and making huge investments in infrastructure in order to get minerals out of the ground and help feed the Chinese export engine.
Here is an article/comment on the 3.4B Chinese investment in an Afghani copper mine and associated infrastructure.
http://mqvu.wordpress.com/2010/03/01/new-york-times-on-chinese-investment-in-afghanistan/
Reports about vast mineral wealth beneath the soil of Afghanistan date back to about 1970. A key problem then, as now, is distance from any port where the ore could be loaded onto ships for transport to refineries.
I have to take exception with something Dan said yesterday: “If the Afgans wanted a modern, capitalist system able to support such a plan it would have happend long ago”
Actually, they did, the Soviets screwed it over and the Taliban (with Pakistan’s help) finished the job. Here is a very interesting article describing Afganistan in the 50’s and 60’s.
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/05/27/once_upon_a_time_in_afghanistan?page=full
I’m sure there was a significant rural/urban divide that wasn’t emphasized here, but I have no problem imagining what that Afganistan could have done with some valuable mineral deposits.