Lahore - We thought that peace in Afghanistan was mostly limited to the interest of only neighboring countries. But now, it is no doubt that Afghanistan may transform to a new zone for economic warfare. An article was published by Julia Horowitz at CNN on 19th of August, soon after US withdrew its troops from Afghanistan which stated:
“The Taliban are sitting on $1 trillion worth of minerals that world desperately needs.” Lithium reserves were first discovered in Afghanistan on 2010. However, at that time, the most precious resource was oil. But as the world is shifting towards environmentally friendly energy resources, oil is becoming obselete. It’s not hard to anticipate that within few years, the world will become all electric, using non-fossil energy resources. As we already know that the in the new electric world, auto-mobile industry plays a vital role. It is quite certain that the EV (electric-vehicle) is the future due to its exceptional advantages. And as all the EV industry in the world is dependent on lithium-ion batteries, Afghanistan having the world largest lithium reserves, can be called as the new “gold mine”. Thus, to control the global energy circulation in the future, nations all over the world are suddenly becoming interested in Afghanistan.
As US invaded Afghanistan for approximately 20 years, it’s quite clear that US would not be able to extract those minerals easygoing. However, on the other hand, after US withdrawal from Afghanistan, China and Russia seems to be two global powers that may win this economic war as they have already officially accepted the Taliban rule.
A different perspective on this issue could be: How did the Taliban took over Afghanistan within months with no resistance? Could it be because of a secret treaty between US and Afghanistan based on those minerals? How come after 20 years of invasion, the US troops suddenly lost the war? Did the US already make a confidential treaty with the Taliban and won this economic war?
US and China are also fighting over other “Rear Earth Minerals”: Rear Earth Minerals are used in the making of electronic chips in cars, computers, cell phones and almost every electric device that uses programming and computer algorithms. As there is a global shortage in these electronic chips, investing in Afghanistan might help either US or China win the trade war. There is no doubt that Afghanistan is the new interest for investment from all over the globe because of its mineral rich land, but the question is, who will win this economic war in Afghanistan? Will it be US, China, Russia or Afghanistan itself?
