In a hearing before the subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific of the Committee on International Relations of the House of Representatives, on February 12, 1998, Mr. John J. Maresca, vice president of international relations of the Unocal Corporation stated that the vast oil and gas resources of the region could only be exploited if there was a stable US-friendly government in place in Afghanistan. Negotiations about a gas pipeline which were held with the Taliban government until about six months ago did not produce the required results. So oil interests are definitely a part of the reason for this war, but strategic geopolitical interests for control of the region including the numerous former Soviet republics are equally important for America.