Afghan Jackpot?

[SubGod22]

U.S. Discovers $1T in Afghan Mineral Deposits

Americans discovered nearly $1 trillion in untapped mineral deposits in Afghanistan, including iron, copper, cobalt, gold and critical industrial metals like lithium, according to the report. The Times quoted a Pentagon memo as saying Afghanistan could become the "Saudi Arabia of lithium," a key raw material in the manufacture of batteries for laptops and cell phones.

During a visit last month to Washington, Afghan President Hamid Karzai said his nation's untapped mineral deposits could be even higher -- perhaps as much as $3 trillion.

[ISASO]

King Obama, could we make Afghanistan the 58th State in the Union?

[Maggie]

Afghanistan's mineral find and the Washington clock

… veteran Afghan hands say the “discovery” of Afghanistan’s mineral wealth is hardly new. And some detect an echo of Petraeus’ effort to “put a little more time on the Washington clock” for the Afghanistan surge as he once described his public relations strategy to buy time in the U.S. for the Iraq surge. The Times report itself notes the Pentagon agreed to discuss the minerals discovery as a rare good news story amid many more disturbing reports coming from Afghanistan.

“The ‘discovery’ of Afghanistan’s minerals will sound pretty silly to old timers,” one retired former senior U.S. official based in Afghanistan writes. “When I was living in Kabul in the early 1970’s the [U.S. government], the Russians, the World Bank, the UN and others were all highly focused on the wide range of Afghan mineral deposits. Cheap ways of moving the ore to ocean ports has always been the limiting factor.”

I think this “discovery” could break a couple different ways – good and bad. Let’s hope the Afghan’s can figure out a way (they will, obviously, need help) to exploit the resources in a positive way.

[1979Shocker]

The information about all this Afghanistan mineral wealth has been available online since at least 2007.

[Veritas]

I think they would rather continue to cultivate their $38B poppy crop and continue to get stoned in the mountains with bristle face bin laden.

[BenWSU]

The govt will get the money off the resources & the common people will continue to starve.

[SB Shock]

The govt will get the money off the resources & the common people will continue to starve.

This is all propoganda. These resources aren't just new finds. It has been known for quite awhile. It is the administration trying to buy time for afghanistan to show that it is not just arid ground and moutains, but there is some redeeming quality.

It is not cost effective to mine and export the resource. Plus it is a threat to the Taliban for the country to try and move out of the dark ages therefore they will do everything to disrupt.