Oh Great, A Reason To Stay In Afghanistan
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.
An internal Pentagon memo, for example, states that Afghanistan could become the “Saudi Arabia of lithium,” a key raw material in the manufacture of batteries for laptops and BlackBerrys.
Lithium is becoming an increasingly important mineral because of its use in batteries. It’s becoming a sought-after commodity because of the increase in hybrid and electric cars, as well as most electronic devices. Other metals are becoming more scarce with time, like gallium, indium, copper and zinc.
I think this means the U.S. will maintain a great interest in the future of Afghanistan for a long time to come.
Tags: Afghanistan, Lithium, Peak Metals
They don’t hate us for our freedom.
But we kill them for their lithium.
The Taliban just figured out how to finance their nuclear program after we leave.
I haven’t read all the details yet, but I find it kind of hard to believe these mineral deposits were not known much earlier. The news is not the minerals, but the time we chose to announce it.
Rather than a nuclear program, the Taliban just found a spanking new partner — the Chinese. Who will be just as eager to help them exploit these resources and who won’t ask them for democratic or human rights commitments. And who will help them train up a police force without living with drones and without asking these police to perform.
I remember the “strategic mineral deposits” argument from the Viet Nam war. I guess the Pentagon/Military Industrial Establishment has decided to trot it out again.
And maybe this minerals find isn’t exactly new. And maybe a play to beef up support for this war. Certainly the fact that the Chinese already have a big mining operation going south of Kabul isn’t new……