Afghanistan Contains Treasure Trove of Valuable Minerals, Report Finds

Many of the mineral deposits consist of copper, cobalt, iron and lithium -- key components in the production of cell phones, computers and hybrid cars.

The U.S. geologists and Pentagon officials who traced the deposits believe that the amounts of these elements could make Afghanistan, rich -- if handled well.

"It's very heartening that Afghanistan has a very bright future, if the Afghan mineral results are properly extracted," said Waheed Omer, a spokesman for President Hamid Karzai.

A Pentagon document states that Afghanistan could become the "Saudi Arabia of lithium," a country known for its vast wealth from its production of oil.

Money embedded in rocks

	As the lightest of all metals, lithium is a major component in batteries used for personal accessories.

Lithium is a soft silver-white metal that is a critical element in industrial products across the globe. Under standard conditions, it's the lightest of all metals and a sizeable raw material in rechargeable cell phone and laptop batteries--often called lithium-ion batteries.

Currently, Bolivia has the world's largest lithium deposits, however, the Pentagon report suggests that Afghanistan's Ghazni province -- located in the country's eastern region near Pakistan -- could have deposits that mirror Bolivia's in size.

Hints of mineral wealth in the 1980s

	Afghanistan borders many former Soviet countries. The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in the 1980s and made initial mineral discoveries.

When Afghanistan was occupied by the Soviet Union, mining experts collected data and charts that hinted Afghanistan could be a hotbed for major mineral deposits. However, as the Soviets pulled out of Afghanistan in 1989 and civil war wreaked havoc on the country in the 1990s, this information was lost.

"The Soviets had looked at this and wanted to exploit it. But then the war got in the way, and they never did. And, in fact, some of the Afghan geologists took them home during the civil war to preserve them. Those charts were then used by the Americans to do new surveys," said James Risen, a New York Times reporter who covered the story.

Once the United States invaded Afghanistan in 2001, Afghan geologists returned the charts to the Afghan Geological Survey in Kabul, the country's capital.

"Early in the war, the Bush administration was looking for some reconstruction projects," said Risen. "And, by 2007, they had completed some new high-tech charts and data that showed enormous deposits that nobody knew existed. And they began to realize, 'wait a second, this is huge.'"

Natural resources are often a double-edged sword

	With corruption rampant and the Taliban still active in the country, Afghanistan must overcome many hurdles before cultivating its resources.

This newfound wealth presents a host of new issues for Afghanistan as the war rages on and corruption within the government remains a problem. Natural resources can cause deadly power struggles, as has happened with the diamond trade in Sierra Leone and oil in Nigeria.

U.S. officials worry that new found mineral wealth could cause the Islamic fundamentalist group, the Taliban, to strengthen its offensive in an effort to once again take control of Afghanistan.

And because Afghanistan has seen nothing but war for the last two decades, bringing these minerals to market from remote mountains and valleys will take quite some time. The country lacks a mining industry, modern infrastructure such as highways and rail networks and the proper expertise to join the international trade for these valuable materials.

The New York Times reports that 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. He has since been replaced.

The Pentagon has brought in international accounting firms to study how to start the bidding process, Risen reported.

"It could take decades or, you know, generations to fully develop, but I think, for the first time, it provides some alternatives for the Afghans," said Risen.