How the Taliban’s Win Benefits China’s Belt and Road

Communist China has made no great secret of its lust for Afghanistan’s natural resources, or its belief that the Taliban conquest will bring a gruesome stability to that fractious and tribal nation.

If the budding partnership between Beijing and the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” holds up, it could have long-term ramifications for China’s colonialist Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

China is eager to exploit up to $3 trillion in rare-earth minerals in Afghanistan, improving its chokehold on the world market and feeding much-needed minerals into China’s hungry industrial machine. China also has a $4.2 billion copper mine in Afghanistan, plus projects under development by the China National Petroleum Corporation.

Chinese state media are eagerly boasting of courteous treatment from the Taliban for “private” Chinese businesses and clearly signaling to Taliban leadership that gigantic state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are ready to move in once Beijing is convinced Afghanistan is under control and stable enough for massive investments.

“We are ready to exchange views with China on how to forge ahead in terms of boosting our mutual relations, establishing peace in the region, and its assistance in the reconstruction of Afghanistan,” a Taliban spokesman declared on Monday.

The benefits China can bring to the Taliban are clear, beginning with great-power diplomatic protection that will make any replay of the post-9/11 invasion by U.S. and NATO forces impossible. China shields its client states from action by international organizations, from the United Nations to human rights groups. This frees up the most vicious of China’s partner regimes to do whatever it takes to maintain power and suppress uprisings.- READ MORE