US official: talks on Kyrgyzstan base continue

[Coventina]

Source: Associated Press

MOSCOW (AP) — A senior U.S. official said Friday that Kyrgyzstan and Washington have agreed to continue talks over a key American air base that American forces had been told to leave within six months.

A Kyrgyz presidential spokesman reiterated that the base decision was final, but said the Central Asian country was still open to a new deal with the United States.

The base provides support for military operations in Afghanistan, and its potential closure poses a challenge to President Barack Obama's plan to send up to 30,000 additional troops to Afghanistan this year to fight surging Taliban and al-Qaida violence.

Kyrgyzstan last month ordered the United States to leave the base within 180 days.



Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jg2aPCkh2TdmF8zxxwo27FAlTp9wD976B33O1

[Robbien]

1. Not going to happen.

http://www.russiatoday.com/Top_News/2009-03-27/US_air_base_in_Kyrgyzstan_to_be_reactivated.html/print

Kyrgyz delegation members denied the report. So did Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Kardyrbek Sarbayev and President Bakiev’s press service.

This is an unexpected development in the story of the controversial military base, which the Central Asian country refused to host any longer in February.

Earlier on Thursday, Minister Sarbayev reiterated that the country was not planning to let the US military return to the base.

In March, Kurmanbek Bakiyev said in an interview with the BBC that "doors are open" for the US to make suggestions over how to stabilize the situation in Afghanistan. Some media interpreted the Kyrgyz leader’s words as an invitation to review the terms of hosting the Manas base, despite the fact that he had said the previous deal was off.