【Russia Returns to Afghanistan: Building Small Hydropower Stations in Exchange for Key Mineral Mining Permits】Afghanistan's new ambassador to Russia, Gul Hassan, recently revealed to TASS that Russian companies have begun negotiations in Kabul regarding the construction of small hydropower stations.
For Kabul, small hydropower is the fastest way to provide electricity to remote areas; for Russia, this not only means the export of turbines and related technologies, but also a strategic effort to re-enter Afghanistan and establish a foothold there.
The key issue is—who will pay? Considering Afghanistan's current economic situation, Russia is unlikely to provide loans to it. However, Afghanistan is rich in lithium, copper, and rare earth resources, with an estimated copper resource total of millions of tons. Perhaps, this will adopt the model that Russia has already implemented in Africa - by building infrastructure, it will gain access to large-scale mineral resource development as a "pass."
At the same time, Afghanistan is also trying to persuade Russia to allow Afghan migrant workers. However, Moscow is not in a hurry. Previously, Russia's special envoy for Afghanistan issues, Zamir Kablov, stated that due to the risk of introducing extremists and radicals, it is not feasible to introduce a large number of Afghan laborers. Therefore, the current quota is set at 80 people per year. Afghanistan
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1856004538843148/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author himself.