“Many observers…are convinced that the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan had…the benign approval of the United States (which saw the Taliban as the best hope for a united Afghanistan through which oil and gas pipelines could be built). In [May 20] 1997, the Wall Street Journal declared: ‘The Taliban are the players most capable of achieving peace. Moreover, they are crucial to secure the country as a prime trans-shipment route for the export of Central Asia’s vast oil, gas and other natural resources.’ ”
– Peter Dale Scott, The Road to 9/11, Page 130