Kazakhstan on Monday became the latest nation to offer its territory for the transit of non-lethal cargo to US and Nato troops in Afghanistan, following Kyrgyzstan's shock decision to shut a key US airbase. "Kazakhstan has given its consent to the transit of cargo by land for the logistics of the US contingent in Afghanistan," ministry spokesman Yerzhan Ashikbayev told journalists.
"We will work out the technical and commercial parameters with the US side separately," Ashikbayev said. The announcement from Kazakhstan comes days after Kyrgyzstan's government ordered the closure of a US airbase that serves as a vital supply route for US and Nato troops in Afghanistan. The administration of US President Barack Obama has made Afghanistan a top priority and has pressed hard to secure overland transit agreements from Russia and Central Asian nations amid security problems on the Pakistan route.
And since Bishkek's announcement of the base's closure shocked the United States and Nato, other states have lined up to offer their support to the Western military alliance.
Tajikistan also said last week it was ready to allow US and Nato supplies for Afghanistan, including construction materials, medicines, fuel and water, to transit its soil by road. Even Russia has said it will agree to a US request to allow the transit of supplies for Nato forces in Afghanistan once Washington details what goods require transit. A Kyrgyz parliamentary committee on Monday moved a step closer to endorsing the government plan to close the US air base, officials said.
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