KABUL (SW) – Khobaib Ghofran, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Information and Culture (MoIC), stated that the de-facto government has pledged comprehensive cooperation to MCC Chinese Company for the extraction and exploration of the Aynak copper mine in Logar only if considering the preservation of historical heritage.
Ghofran said that Atiqullah Aziz, the deputy minister of culture and art of MoIC, has met with Sung Woon bing, the new head of MCC Company, at his office on Thursday.
The MCC Company has assured that it will proceed with the extraction and exploration of the Aynak copper mine in Logar while preserving the archaeological artifacts.
“So far, over 1000 historical artifacts have been transferred from the Aynak copper mine and some historical artifacts remain in the area that are not movable. MCC has assured that they will proceed with the work while preserving these historical artifacts.”
According to information from MCC Company, the Chinese government has approved the Aynak copper mine-drilling project.
Meanwhile, officials from the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum say that obstacles to the extraction and exploration of the Aynak copper mine have been addressed. They add that technical teams from the ministry have started working on the extraction project of the Aynak copper mine.
Homayun Afghan, the Spokesperson for the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, states, “MCC has proposed an alternative plan to work underground, and our technical teams are currently examining all aspects of this plan.”
The contract for the extraction of the Aynak copper mine in Logar Province was signed with MCC Chinese Company for a period of 30 years in 2008.
