Kabul: Terrorist outfit Taliban claimed that they see China as a ‘friend’ and will ensure their safety. Taliban spokesperson Suhail Shaheen said this to a Chinese daily South China Morning Post. ‘If (the Chinese) have investments, of course, we will ensure their safety. We have been to China many times and we have good relations with them,’ said Suhail Shaheen.
Taliban also made it clear that it will not support and host the Uyghur militants from the Xinjiang province in China. East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), the main militant organization that ignites insurgency in Xinjiang in China has made Afghanistan its major hub. China had earlier criticized the US for withdrawing their forces from Afghanistan without establishing peace in the country. Amidst the US withdrawal, China has evacuated 210 nationals from Afghanistan on a chartered flight.
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China is aiming to make huge investments in the mineral rich Afghanistan. Afghanistan has the world’s largest unexploited reserves of copper, coal, iron, gas, cobalt, mercury, gold, lithium and thorium, valued at over USD one trillion. In 2011, the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) won a $400 million bid to drill three oil fields for 25 years, containing roughly 87 million barrels of oil.
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