Quote:
Originally Posted by Shotsie
Although the U.S. government has spent more than $940 billion on the conflict in Afghanistan since 2001, a treasure trove of mineral deposits, including vast quantities of industrial metals such as lithium, gold, cobalt, copper and iron, are likely to wind up going to Russia and China instead of American firms.
In December, 2007, China's state-owned China Metallurgical Group Corp. (MCC) signed a $2.9 billion agreement with the Kabul government to extract copper from the Aynak deposit, one of the world's largest unexploited copper deposits with an estimated 240 million tons of ore.
http://www.dailyfinance.com/2010/06/...ineral-mining/ |
A complete cock up indeed, China were never meant to get their hands on this. If China get a contract we're told it's bribes and corruption, then ministers are replaced with ones who will give future contracts to Western firms. Chinese firms are clearly unacceptable buyers
"The corruption that is already rampant in the Karzai government could also be amplified by the new wealth, particularly if a handful of well-connected oligarchs, some with personal ties to the president, gain control of the resources. Just last year, Afghanistan’s minister of mines was accused by American officials of accepting a $30 million bribe to award China the rights to develop its copper mine. The minister has since been replaced. "
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/14/wo...ewanted=1&_r=1