U.S. finishes withdrawal from Uzbekistan base

[bemildred]

TASHKENT, Uzbekistan — The U.S. military on Monday completed its withdrawal from an air base in Uzbekistan that has been an important hub for American military operations in Afghanistan, the U.S. Embassy said.

In July, hard-line President Islam Karimov ordered the U.S. troops to leave the base within six months after Washington joined international condemnation of a bloody government crackdown in the eastern city of Andijan that human rights groups say killed hundreds of civilians.

The U.S. Embassy in Tashkent said the military attache reported that the last plane had left the base in Karshi-Khanabad.

Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Joe Carpenter told the AP by telephone from Washington that the withdrawal has been taking place on a gradual basis in the past several months.

StarTribune

[amandabeech]

1. So much for dominating the oil and gas routes from that base.

A gas pipeline through Afghanistan looks even more iffy.

And Gazprom has gained a monopoly over the pipelines from Turkmenistan. The Balts, the Poles and the Ukrainians are now tied to a Russian gas umbiblical chord, and we can't do a thing about it.

Russia is securing with energy what it lost through economic and political breakdown.

What * and Rice thought they were doing by critizing the Uzbeks, particularly after Abu G., I'll never know. That is unless they think that it will give them street cred for the next color revolution.

However, I think that they've lost a lot by ignoring the Ukrainians and the Georgians after the revolutions succeeded, but the energy did not flow. In the case of the Georgians, it is because there may not be enough oil coming out of the Baku-Ceyhan pipeline to matter. It is also not the fault of the Georgians that the Turks refused transit for U.S. troops.

The U.S. now views Turkey as unreliable, and may be trying to grab Syria for the pipeline outlet to the Med, bypassing Turkey. The Turks, of course, can't be happy with the Israelis and the U.S. catering to the Kurds.

Then there's also the story that the * regime wants to detach the Azeri and Kurd sections of Iran from the whole and run a pipeline down from Baku to connect with the Syrian pipelines. Then the U.S. would combine Kurdish areas of Syria, Iraq and Iran to form an actual Kurdistan, a move that would surely end polite diplomatic relations.

What a mess.

[Dancing_Dave]

2. Syria wouldn't give them a pipeline to the Med UNLESS

They also invaded and occupied Iran. Look at a map.

[amandabeech]

7. Try reading my post more slowly.

Believe me, I have looked at the map so many times that my atlas is falling apart.

[bemildred]

3. No, no, everything is fine. This is great.

:banghead::banghead:
Pissing off the Turks was really stupid.

[Chicago Democrat]

4. US got kicked out... "withdrawal" my ass

:)

[enigma000]

5. The US doesn't need a thug like Karimov

If the US government is serious about its promotion of human rights then ties with these type regimes should be cut.

[0007]

9. And Uzbekistan doesn't need a thug like bush!

The U.S. isn't interested in human rights, only oil.

[enigma000]

11. Perhaps not

Still, it seems the Russians care even less about human rights - as indicated from the posts below.

[Javaman]

6. I wonder when the Russians are moving in? n/t

[bemildred]

8. Russia, Uzbekistan Agree on Mutual Use of Military Bases

Note the date.

The presidents of Russia and Uzbekistan signed a military treaty at the Kremlin on Monday, forging an alliance that reasserts Moscow’s influence in the former Soviet republic, which until recently was a U.S. ally, The Washington Post reports.

The deal, which could foreshadow the establishment of a Russian military base there, allows each country the use of military installations on the other’s territory. The agreement also calls for them to provide military aid to each other in the event that either is facing “aggression”.

Uzbekistan was a close ally of the United States, hosting a U.S. air base, until relations became severely strained over Uzbek troops’ suppression of an uprising last May in the city of Andijan. In July, the Uzbek government gave U.S. forces six months to leave.

Monday’s treaty was signed shortly after the Uzbek Supreme Court sentenced 15 people to 14-20 years in prison on charges of attempting to overthrow the government in the Andijan violence. Human rights groups condemned the seven-week proceeding as a show trial.

MosNews

[Javaman]

10. Funny how that works, huh? n/t

[tabasco]

12. You forgot Uzbekistan !

The Poles are already gone, IIRC.