Next Step: Exploit Afghanistan’s Natural Resources

In my piece today on the gradual drawdown of NATO troops in Afghanistan, I provided plenty of evidence supporting the notion that we are not getting out of Afghanistan in 2014, as the Obama administration claims. By the end of next year, 40,000 will have been withdrawn, from the approximately 140,000 there now.

I’ve written before about how actual military and defense officials repeatedly explain that 2014 will not be the end of the occupation. As just one example, in a recent talk at the Council on Foreign Relations from under secretary of defense for policy at the Department of Defense Michèle Flournoy, she explained that “2014 is not a withdrawal date—it’s an inflection point.” And now Afghan President Hamid Karzai has tacitly approved a robust strategic agreement and U.S. military presence through 2024 at his council of over 2,000 tribal elders.

But if we needed more evidence that 2014 is merely a political stamp (I think the zero should have a peace sign in it), as opposed to an actual date for the end of the military occupation, I think training Afghan geoscientists to collect, process, and exploit valuable “mineral resources” and “rare earth elements” in Afghanistan is plenty enough to top it off.

The Pentagon’s Task Force for Business and Stability Operations (TFBSO), in partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey, announced today it will provide training and equipment specific to airborne geophysical exploration to the Afghan Geological Survey.  This initiative is part of the U.S. Government’s continuing efforts to help the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan identify and develop its vast deposits of mineral resources in a transparent and responsible fashion.

A key component of the USGS’ new effort is to train Afghan geoscientists in collecting, processing and interpreting high-resolution geophysical data themselves.  Utilizing airborne technology is essential to obtaining reliable, detailed information on mineral and rare earth element deposits.

…The TFBSO has already worked extensively with USGS to develop an ongoing survey of mineral resources and rare earth elements in Afghanistan, as well as creating an online and central repository for that data in Kabul.  The new training is intended to augment and expand these earlier efforts.  This earlier work identified at least $1 trillion in mineral resources, fossil fuels, and rare earth elements within Afghanistan, according to Pentagon estimates.

108 thoughts on “Next Step: Exploit Afghanistan’s Natural Resources”

  1. Pingback: Next Step: Exploit Afghanistan’s Natural Resources « Peace and Justice Post

  2. Energy and other rare-earth minerals are the real target of this baseless war. During the Summer of 2001, months prior to 9/11, an official of the US State Department threatened the Taliban for favoring Bridas of Argentina for the Trans-Afghan-Pipeline pipeline project (TAP). "You either accept our carpet of gold or we will bury you in a carpet of bombs" threatened the US official.
    At a conference in Berlin during that same summer in 2001, US officials warned Pakistsn Secretary Niaz Naik that the US "will attack Afghanistan before the snow flies in October," again, months prior to 9/11, our oft-stated motive for attacking Afghanistan. Pakistan officials claim that US motives were primarily based on regime change and thereby eliminating the upstart compeitor Bridas from securing the TAP contract. We all know that no Afghan citizen nor Afghanistan played any role in 9/11. We also know that the Taliban made numerous concessions regarding Osama bin Laden to the Bush White House to no avail. It seems clear that the real reason for this war is resource exclusivity.

    1. Nice post. You should give a name or at least supply link notations when you quote. Exactly what Taliban concessions are you talking about. Thank you much.

  3. Pingback: Afghanistan Opens Bids to Western Investors for Mineral Deposits -- News from Antiwar.com

  4. This is not a good thing to exploit the natural resources of the other countries. There are many of the problems faced during the way but it is not right to get all expenditure refunded from there land only.

  5. The Pentagon’s Task Force for Business and Stability Operations (TFBSO), in partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey, announced today it will provide training and equipment specific to airborne geophysical exploration to the Afghan Geological Survey. This initiative is part of the U.S. Government’s continuing efforts to help the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan identify and develop its vast deposits of mineral resources in a transparent and responsible fashion.houston sports limo

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