.Kyrgyz parliament to vote early on US air base
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (AP) - Kyrgyzstan's parliament said Tuesday it will vote this week on a bill to close a U.S. air base that provides key support to military operations in Afghanistan, as the top U.S. commander for the region visited Uzbekistan in search of new supply routes for forces fighting the Taliban.
President Barack Obama's call for an increased military focus on Afghanistan could be hampered both by the potential closure of the Manas air base in Kyrgyzstan and increased attacks on the main land route for supplies through Pakistan.
Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev unexpectedly called this month for the closure of the Manas base, a transit point for 15,000 troops and 500 tons of cargo each month to and from Afghanistan. It also is a base for military refueling planes.
The decision is expected to easily pass parliament, which is dominated by the president's party.
A vote had not been expected until March, which would have given Washington more time to try to change Bakiyev's mind. But the parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday approved the order and set a Thursday vote for the lower house.
"The committee has endorsed the bill and will present the resolution to parliament this coming Thursday," said committee chairman Erik Arsaliyev.
If the bill is approved, the United States would have to leave the base within 180 days.
U.S. State Department spokesman Gordon Duguid said Tuesday that U.S. officials were discussing the situation with Kyrgyz officials.
"We are still talking to the Kyrgyzstan officials about our position on the Manas air base," he said at a briefing. "We have not received an official rejection of our position, if I can put it that way."
Meanwhile, Gen. David Petraeus was in Uzbekistan to meet with President Islam Karimov to discuss moving the base, the U.S. Embassy said without providing details.
The United States has secured permission from Russia and Kazakhstan to send non-lethal supplies for Afghanistan by rail, but neither of those countries border Afghanistan and the supplies would have to also transit through Uzbekistan.
U.S.-Uzbekistan relations have been tense in recent years amid U.S. criticism of Karimov's harsh rule. Uzbekistan evicted U.S. troops from a base in 2005, but this year allowed forces from NATO countries to use the facility.
President Bakiyev has complained that the United States was not paying enough rent for the Manas base. His announcement on the base closure was made in Moscow, shortly after Russia offered his impoverished country $2.15 billion in aid and loans. Analysts say the closure and the aid appeared to be linked, although officials deny any connection.
But Kyrgyz deputy Murat Jurayev, a member of the pro-government party that dominates parliament, said the government's action could help to bolster ties with Russia.
"Closing the American air base is beneficial to the friendship between Russia and Kyrgyzstan - that is why the committee took the decision," Jurayev said Tuesday.
The United States began using the Manas base shortly after it launched operations against Afghanistan following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
MyWay
Believe it or not the economy give Obama an opening, and could nullify The Russian/Iranian advantage.
Stay tuned, this looks so fluid right now I would not try to look further than, day to day.
President Barack Obama's call for an increased military focus on Afghanistan could be hampered both by the potential closure of the Manas air base in Kyrgyzstan and increased attacks on the main land route for supplies through Pakistan.
Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev unexpectedly called this month for the closure of the Manas base, a transit point for 15,000 troops and 500 tons of cargo each month to and from Afghanistan. It also is a base for military refueling planes.
The decision is expected to easily pass parliament, which is dominated by the president's party.
A vote had not been expected until March, which would have given Washington more time to try to change Bakiyev's mind. But the parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday approved the order and set a Thursday vote for the lower house.
"The committee has endorsed the bill and will present the resolution to parliament this coming Thursday," said committee chairman Erik Arsaliyev.
If the bill is approved, the United States would have to leave the base within 180 days.
U.S. State Department spokesman Gordon Duguid said Tuesday that U.S. officials were discussing the situation with Kyrgyz officials.
"We are still talking to the Kyrgyzstan officials about our position on the Manas air base," he said at a briefing. "We have not received an official rejection of our position, if I can put it that way."
Meanwhile, Gen. David Petraeus was in Uzbekistan to meet with President Islam Karimov to discuss moving the base, the U.S. Embassy said without providing details.
The United States has secured permission from Russia and Kazakhstan to send non-lethal supplies for Afghanistan by rail, but neither of those countries border Afghanistan and the supplies would have to also transit through Uzbekistan.
U.S.-Uzbekistan relations have been tense in recent years amid U.S. criticism of Karimov's harsh rule. Uzbekistan evicted U.S. troops from a base in 2005, but this year allowed forces from NATO countries to use the facility.
President Bakiyev has complained that the United States was not paying enough rent for the Manas base. His announcement on the base closure was made in Moscow, shortly after Russia offered his impoverished country $2.15 billion in aid and loans. Analysts say the closure and the aid appeared to be linked, although officials deny any connection.
But Kyrgyz deputy Murat Jurayev, a member of the pro-government party that dominates parliament, said the government's action could help to bolster ties with Russia.
"Closing the American air base is beneficial to the friendship between Russia and Kyrgyzstan - that is why the committee took the decision," Jurayev said Tuesday.
The United States began using the Manas base shortly after it launched operations against Afghanistan following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
MyWay
Believe it or not the economy give Obama an opening, and could nullify The Russian/Iranian advantage.
Stay tuned, this looks so fluid right now I would not try to look further than, day to day.
posted by madtom at 10:20 PM
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