Rassoul reaches Australia on two-day visit

KABUL): Foreign Minister Dr. Zalmai Rassoul, currently on an official visit to Australia, would open an exhibition of historical Afghan artifacts at the Melbourne Museum, his office said on Wednesday.

Rassoul will meet Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Defence Minister Stephen Smith, besides inaugurating the exhibition — Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures of the National Museum of Kabul.

“My message to the people of Australia is a message of thanks for the tremendous role that Australia has played in bringing security and development to Afghanistan over the past decade,” the minister said.

In a statement from the ministry, he acknowledged Australia’s contributions to Afghanistan, including generous investment and reconstruction and development assistance.

The exhibition in Melbourne will showcase some 2,000 pieces of Bactrian gold persevered by the Museum of Kabul throughout the years of strife and Taliban rule during the 1990s.

Rassoul said: “The preservation of this rich treasure and its rehabilitation mirrors the story of Afghanistan’s revival over the past decade as a young democracy, a youthful society and a forward-looking country…”

pr/mud 

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