DTN News: US Troop Flights At Kyrgyzstan Base Suspended Says US Military

Defense News: DTN News: US Troop Flights At Kyrgyzstan Base Suspended Says US Military

Source: DTN News / AFP
(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON - April 10, 2010: The US military has suspended troop flights out of its base in Kyrgyzstan and will instead transport forces to and from Afghanistan via Kuwait, military officials said Friday.
Amid political upheaval in the strategic Central Asian nation, US commanders at the Manas air base decided late Friday "to temporarily divert military passenger transport flights," Major John Redfield, a spokesman for US Central Command, said in an email.
Decisions on continuing other military flights "will be made on a case-by-case basis," he said.
The suspension came after the Americans spotted armored vehicles on the civilian side of the airport, a defense official told AFP.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said details were still unclear and there was no sign of tensions with the civilian authorities at Manas, a crucial hub for the NATO-led war in Afghanistan.
The suspension of troop flights -- which were diverted to a US base in Kuwait -- would remain in effect for at least 72 hours, the official said, but aerial tanker aircraft were continuing to use the runway.
Kyrgyzstan's interim leader Friday offered president Kurmanbek Bakiyev safe passage out of the country, but only if he first resigns.
Bakiyev, however, remained defiant. He told AFP in an interview that he would not resign and accusing the opposition that ousted him of having blood on their hands over this week's uprising that killed at least 75 people.
NATO has increasingly relied on the Manas base amid a surge of US forces in the Afghan war, with an influx of 30,000 troops due by August.
But the US military presence has irritated Russia, placing Kyrgyzstan at the center of a big power rivalry for regional influence.
Kyrgyzstan last year threatened to close the base after receiving a promise of more than two billion dollars in aid and loans from Moscow, which many saw as a sign of Russian resentment over the American operation.
Bishkek eventually agreed to keep the US base open after Washington more than tripled the rent paid to use Manas.
The US base operates round-the-clock, carrying out mid-air refuelling missions and medical evacuations while transporting tens of thousands of troops and hundreds of tonnes of cargo every month.
In March, about 50,000 troops passed through Manas, en route to or out of Afghanistan, according to US Central Command.