The 2001 invasion of Afghanistan and following occupation by the United States was largely to protect the country’s opium cultivation and exploit its vast mineral resources, particularly the deposits of lithium, according to James Henry Fetzer, an American academic who has been studying the events of 9/11 since late 2001.

Addressing a private sector side event in Geneva on Tuesday, Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani pointed out the constraints that have challenged the Afghan economy.