Sources: U.S. considers base in Uzbekistan

[unhappycamper]

Sources: U.S. considers base in Uzbekistan
By Anne Gearan and Robert Burns - The Associated Press
Posted : Thursday Feb 5, 2009 16:55:15 EST

WASHINGTON — The United States is considering resuming military cooperation with authoritarian Uzbekistan as a part of backup planning for the potential loss of a nearby air hub for troops and supplies in the widening Afghanistan war, U.S. officials said Thursday.

Defense officials say they are examining options for supply routes through a semicircle of nations from Central Asia to the Persian Gulf that could be used in place of the strategic air base in the former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan.

Uzbekistan is a surprise contender because diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Uzbekistan are rocky at best. The Uzbeks expelled the U.S. from the Manas base in 2005, and the two nations have traded accusations since.

Defense officials said planning to substitute for Manas is a preliminary hedge in case the Bishkek government makes good on a threat to expel the United States from a hub serving about 15,000 U.S. personnel coming and going from Afghanistan each month, along with 500 tons of goods.

Defense officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the plans are preliminary and the United States still is negotiating with Kyrgyzstan about continued use of the base. Several officials said that dispute is likely to come down to money: Either the United States agrees to a significant increase in rent or Kyrgyzstan will yield to Russian pressure to kick the U.S. out.


Rest of article at: http://airforcetimes.com/news/2009/02/ap_uzbekistan_base_020509w/%2e

[Christa]

1. I thought the base in Kyrgyzstan is about to be closed

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/600/42/374285.htm

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan -- The Kyrgyz government took the first steps Wednesday to close a U.S. military air base that is vital for supplying U.S.-led troops fighting in Afghanistan.

The Kyrgyz government sent parliament a decree on closing the Manas base on Wednesday.

Adakhan Madumarov, secretary of the Kyrgyz Security Council, said in Moscow that the U.S. military would be given 180 days to close its operations and leave once the two sides had exchanged formal diplomatic notes outlining the intention.

"The government has made its decision," he told reporters without saying when the exchange was likely to happen.

Parliament sources said it could start debating the decree as soon as Thursday. Parliamentary approval is seen as a formality since the chamber is dominated by the pro-presidential Ak Zhol party.