India, Sept. 9 -- The world's largest undeveloped copper-gold deposit has effectively been put on hold. Not by commodity prices. Not by financing. By the fact that the insurgency threatening it is no longer doing what insurgencies in Balochistan are supposed to do: stay in Balochistan.

Barrick Mining Corporation announced this month it would extend its security review of the Reko Diq project through mid-2027, reducing capital spending and deferring development milestones the company had expected to hit before the end of the year. Pakistan's chief minister of Balochistan personally assured Barrick the province had the "capacity and capability to protect foreign investors." Arab News reported that Barrick extended its review anyway.

The ...