U.S. official: Kyrgyz base is not closing

[unhappycamper]

An unseasonal thunderstorm clears just as the sun sets over the flightline at Manas Air Base, Kyrgyzstan, where KC-135 Stratotanker aircrews waited out the worst of the lightning before taking off. Kyrgyzstan's president said Feb. 3 that the U.S. air base would soon be shut down, but one U.S. official dismissed the claim as political posturing.


U.S. official: Kyrgyz base is not closing
By Mike Eckel - The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Feb 3, 2009 18:13:32 EST

MOSCOW — Kyrgyzstan’s president said Tuesday that his country is ending U.S. use of a key airbase that supports military operations in Afghanistan.

A U.S. military official in Afghanistan called President Kurmanbek Bakiyev’s statement “political positioning” and denied the U.S. presence at the Manas airbase would end anytime soon.

Ending U.S. access would have potentially far-reaching consequences for U.S. and NATO operations in Afghanistan, where the United States is preparing to deploy an additional 15,000 troops to shut down the Taliban and al-Qaida.

It would also signal a significant victory for Moscow in its efforts to squeeze the United States out of Central Asia, home to substantial oil and gas reserves and seen by Russia as part of its strategic sphere of influence.

Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev spoke on a visit to Moscow minutes after Russia announced it was providing the poor Central Asian nation with billions of dollars in aid.


Rest of article at: http://airforcetimes.com/news/2009/02/ap_kyrgyzstan_base_020309/%2e

[RJ Connors]

1. Just saying it ain't so doesn't make it not true.

Case in point: "Mission Accomplished".