Kyrgyz lawmakers back deal to keep US base open

Kyrgyzstan's parliament unanimously approved a deal Thursday allowing the US to continue using an air base crucial to military operations in Afghanistan, sharply shifting course months after ordering American forces out by August. Lawmakers voted 75-0 to ratify the agreement, providing a much-needed boost to the US-led coalition as it ramps up military operations against Taliban and al Qaida militants and struggles to maintain other supply routes into Afghanistan.
Five deputies abstained. Approval was expected after Kyrgyz authorities announced a deal Tuesday to let the US use the Manas air base as a transit center at more than triple the previous rent. Despite changes to the wording, the deal apparently will continue to allow the US to transport weaponry, ammunition and troops as well as non-lethal military supplies.
``The main aim of the agreement between Kyrgyzstan and the US is to fight terrorism and cooperate in providing assistance to Afghanistan's government in maintaining security,' Foreign Minister Kadyrbek Sarbayev said. The decision effectively reverses an eviction order under which US forces were to leave by August 18. President Kurmanbek Bakiyev stunned Washington in February by announcing the base would be closed, citing what he called insufficient compensation and other concerns. US officials have said Russia was behind that decision.
Bakiyev was sitting next to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev when he made the announcement, hours after Moscow pledged more than $2 billion in aid, loans and investment for the struggling ex-Soviet republic. Russia has long warily eyed the US military base deep in its traditional sphere of influence. But Moscow, hoping for better ties with Washington under Barack Obama, now appears eager to cooperate with the US on Afghanistan.
Medvedev, speaking on a trip to Namibia Thursday, hailed the Kyrgyz parliament's decision, saying it will ``help the joint effort of fighting terrorism,' Russian news agencies reported. US forces have had access to Manas, outside the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek, since 2001.
Its importance to Afghan operations grew after neighbouring Uzbekistan evicted US troops from a base there in 2005. Under the new deal, the US will pay Kyrgyzstan $60 million in annual rent for the facility, up from $17.4 million. The US will also allocate $37 million to build new aircraft parking slots and storage areas, plus $30 million for new navigation systems.