Pakistan shows the harbor on the Arab Sea on the US; Eye On Minerals Hub Development: Report – The Times of India

Pakistan’s military chief, Asim Munir, reportedly approached American officials with a proposal to build and operate a port in Pasni on the Arab Sea, making Washington a strategic presence in a geopolitically sensitive region. According to the Financial Times, the plan for transforming Pasni a small fishing town-in a hub for the transport of the critical minerals of Pakistan, including copper and antimony, is essential for batteries, fire-retardant materials and rocket production. The city is about 100 miles from Iran and 70 miles from Gwadar, where China operates a large port facility. The initiative, which is not an official government policy, was reportedly shared with Munir prior to his white house meeting with President Donald Trump last month. However, a senior official of Trump administration clarified that the proposal had not reached the president or his advisers for discussion. The port plan is part of a broader push by Pakistani officials to strengthen ties with the Trump government. Other initiatives include cooperation on a cryptocurrency project supported by Trump, a deeper cooperation against the Afghanistan-based militant group ISIS-K, support for his Gaza Peace plan and access to critical minerals. American and Pakistani diplomats have described the relationship between Munir and Trump as “a bromance”, since the president claimed credit in May for mediating a ceasefiring -the fire between Pakistan and India. In the summer, relations between the US india were cooled, while Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Trump publicly thanked him and even nominated him for the Nobel Prize in Peace. After their recent meeting, the White House released photos with Munir and Sharif who present Trump with mineral samples. The blueprint of Pasni Port includes a railway to transport minerals from the Pakistan interior, which connect to mines such as Reko DIQ, developed by Canada’s Barrick Mining. The estimated costs of the project are $ 1.2 billion, with proposed financing of a mix of Pakistani federal and supported by the US development financing. Proponents say that the plan would diversify the strategic options of Pakistan and at the same time balance the relationships with China, the US, Iran and Saudi Arabia, after a recent safety pact with Riyadh. The blueprint stated: “Pasni’s proximity to Iran and Central Asia improves the American options for trade and safety. Involvement in Pasni would compensate Gwadar and expand the influence of the US in the Arab Sea and Central -Asia.” It also marked potential worries for double use in the Chinese Gwadar-Haven under the Belt and Road Initiative, referring to the fear that it could serve as a naval base, a claim that was refused by Islamabad and Beijing. The plan does not indicate ‘direct bases’, which means that the port would not organize American military installations. Pakistan has traditionally been a narrow ally of the US, first during the Cold War and then after the 9/11 attacks, but the Relations are fraying because of the support of Islamabad for the Taliban in Afghanistan. A consultant, quoted by FT, said: “I told our leaders that we should diversify from China. We do not have to consult the Chinese because it falls outside the Gwadar concession.” The Missouri -based American Strategic Metals (USSM) has shown early interest and signed a memorandum of agreement in September with the Pakistani Military Engineering Corps. USSM commercial director Mike Hollomon said: “In our conversations with the Field Marshal, he emphasized that Pakistan has long been an ally of the US and minerals is a way to regain sleeping friendship.” At the end of last month, Pakistan has shipped a small first shipment of less than two tons of critical minerals, including copper, antimony and neodymium, to USSM. The mineral sector is currently good for about 3 percent of Pakistan GDP, with large untreated reserves in the western provinces. Hussain Abidi, chairman of the Pakistani Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, described the initiative as: “This is a reset with America by economic ties instead of just traditional security ties.”