Mink Int'l reports 70.62 carat diamond discovered in Kenieba concession - Ashton Mining assumes full management of Kenieba Project.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 28, 1997-- Mink International (VSE MKM.) The Company is pleased to announce the discovery of a 70.62 carat diamond in its Kenieba Diamond Concession in the Republic of Mali.

The newly discovered exceptionally large diamond was found near Moralia Village in a stream channel basin, the headwaters of which appear to drain the 19 hectare Cirque kimberlite pipe. Mr. Arlando Arenas, Mink geologist on site, described the place of discovery as follows: "An alluvial placer deposit and/or traditional mining area less than two km - 80 SSW of the Cirque Pipe and about one kilometre due South of the four hectare Sekonomata Kimberlite Pipe." Mr. Arenas further described that: "The 70.62 carat stone was dug from a four (4) meter deep pit in which the excavated material consisted of lateritized paleo placer conglomerate material containing abundant picroilmenites. The former overlays a bedrock of Birrimian Schist - also lateritized."

Observed under optical and petrographic microscopes in the Company's mineral observation laboratory in Bamako, the diamond is a clear white gem with hardly any impurities. It has several ridges and does not have the regular octahedron shape. It also appears to have been broken off a much larger stone. Weighing exactly 14.5 grams, the diamond measured 3.00 cm long x 2.25 cm wide x 1.20 cm at the thickest section. Further analyzed at the Company's Bamako mineral observation laboratory, a "Presidium DiamondMate - A" tester confirmed that the newly discovered stone was indeed a real diamond. The significance of the large diamond discovery is being assessed both from a primary and alluvial deposits' potential. However, the main focus of the joint venture's diamond exploration effort is to locate and test the maximum number of kimberlite pipes. In this regard, Aerodat Inc., which has just completed the airborne geophysical survey over Mink International's Niaouleni Gold Concession, is now remobilizing its crew to Kayes and Kenieba Valley in order to complete the remaining 83 percent of the planned 65,000 line km aeromagnetic survey over the diamond concession.

The Bureau de Recherches Geologiques et Minieres (BRGM) of France, which explored the Kenieba Concession in the early 1980's, recorded many other fairly large diamonds in the same paleo placer zone and/or the stream drainages of the Cirque and Sekonomata pipes where the newly found 70.62 carat diamond was discovered. These include gemstones weighing 232.7, 137.5, 102, 98, 55.5, 38.5, 15 carats and several in the one carat range. The BRGM also reported diamonds found in the Cirque and Sekonomata Pipes, including 6.01, 0.80, 0.44, 0.08 and 0.22 carats respectively.

The Company is also pleased to announce that Ashton Mining is taking over the management of the Kenieba Diamond Project. Ashton has now established an office in Bamako, Mali for their operations.

With the encouraging developments, senior management from both Mink and Ashton are currently meeting in Bamako, Mali and discussing new exploration and operational strategy.

ON BEHALF OF THE COMPANY

Deane H. Williams, Director

The Vancouver Stock Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy nor accuracy of the contents of this news release.

CONTACT: Mink International Resources Corp.

Deane H. Williams, 604/687-3636

E-mail: [e-mail]

Web Site: http://www.mink.com