Shea Levin — text status

Afghanistan’s Taliban government is offering the United States access to the country’s vast mineral resources as it pushes for sanctions relief, the release of frozen Afghan assets and increased foreign investment, the Financial Times reports. Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said Kabul would “absolutely” welcome U.S. investment in mining, infrastructure, agriculture and trade, arguing that future relations should focus on economic cooperation rather than the past two decades of war. Afghanistan is estimated to hold more than $1 trillion in largely untapped mineral deposits, including copper, lithium, cobalt, gold and iron ore.