It has long been argued that wars are fought for economic reasons. World War 2 brought about the rise of the “Swiss Bank Account†where money seized in war could be hidden from others. While there can be numerous reasons for going to war, money tends to be a central focus in all wars. The public discourse might be more about “stopping evil doers†or “defeating terroristsâ€, it is always important to follow the money trail, and understand who is benefiting.In the case of Afghanistan, this is a country with an enormous wealth of resources including gold, copper, lead, zinc, rare earth elements and iron ore. It appears that a big part of the US strategy in Afghanistan is to “get the economy goingâ€. A large part of Afghanistan’s GDP right now comes from foreign aid and the drug trade. Lots of heroine comes from Afghanistan!
After arranging for investors from around the World to take part, JP Morgan is now arranging contracts for gold and other minerals. General Petraeus said “Wonderful!†as he learned of the arrangement. There are reports of JP Morgan execs working with the Pentagon, flying around on blackhawk helicopters to identify mine sites and start making arrangements for mining contracts.
It appears the level of effort going into getting mining operations started has intensified in the last few years. A google search for JP Morgan Afghanistan might be a good place to start further study. There is also a more extensive article in the May 23, 2011 issue of Fortune magazine.
Discussion Questions:
1. Would mining contracts help move the Afghanistan economy forward?
2. Since the US are the invaders, is it our responsibility to facilitate business contracts?