Will Bankrupt Pakistan ever be able to repay all its debts? Army chief issues BIG statement, Asim Munir says Pakistan will be counted among…

New Delhi: Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir is planning to extract rare earth metals, including those in Balochistan so that Islamabad can one day repay all its debts and thereafter join the ranks of the world’s wealthy societies and nations. Munir has recently expressed confidence in maintaining a balance in Pakistan’s relations with both the United States and China.

In an interview given to Pakistan’s news outlet Jang, Field Marshal Asim Munir said,
“Pakistan is blessed with a treasure of rare minerals. By harnessing this treasure, we will be able to reduce Pakistan’s debt at the earliest, and besides this, we will soon be counted among the world’s most prosperous societies.”

Here are some of the key takeaways from Munir’s interview

  • During this interview, Munir mainly referred to the Reko Diq mine in Balochistan
  • Reko Diq mine in Balochistan holds vast reserves of gold and copper.
  • Munir said that starting next year, this project would generate at least 2 billion dollars in net annual profit, and the figure would keep growing year after year.
  • It is noteworthy that Reko Diq is one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper and gold deposits.
  • The mine is estimated to contain 12.3 million tons of copper and 20.9 million ounces of gold.
  • Groups fighting for Balochistan’s independence have strongly opposed Pakistan’s Reko Diq project.
  • Despite this, Islamabad hopes that production from the mine will begin soon.

Bhutto’s Oil Game

It is important to note that Pakistan’s obsession with finding rare earth metals is not new. To recall, in 1976, Pakistan’s then Prime Minister, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, announced the discovery of large crude oil reserves in Balochistan and Sindh. To cover up the country’s real situation, Bhutto even arrived at a press conference carrying a bottle filled with crude oil.

Displaying the bottle, he declared, “Pakistan has now found its own oil, we no longer need to depend on Gulf countries.” However, just a few days after this announcement, it was revealed that the actual amount of oil was very little, and Bhutto’s statement was nothing more than political symbolism.

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