Afghanistan's acting Minister of Minerals and Petroleum Sheikh Shahabuddin Delawar said on August 25 that the country's interim government is working to rapidly resume two projects with China. One of these projects is the Mes Aynak copper mining project, while the other is the extraction of petroleum in the northern Amu River region. The acting minister said that the government is reaching the final stage to restart both projects. Contracts for the two projects were signed with the previous administration, but progress was interrupted. The projects have the potential to create jobs for thousands of Afghans, the acting minister said.