US military evicted from Uzbek air base
WASHINGTON: Uzbekistan has formally evicted the US from a military base
that has served as a hub for its combat operations in Afghanistan, The
Washington Post reported on Saturday.
Citing unnamed Pentagon and State Department officials, the newspaper
reported the notice of eviction from Karshi-Khanabad air base, known as
K2, was delivered by a courier from the Uzbek Foreign Ministry to the US
Embassy in Tashkent on Friday. Uzbekistan will give the United States 180
days to move aircraft, personnel and equipment, according to the report.
The Post said the US would face several logistical problems for its
operations in Afghanistan, if the decision was acted upon. Karshi-Khanabad
has been a landing base to transfer humanitarian goods that are then taken
by road into Afghanistan, particularly to Mazar-i-Sharif - with no
alternative for a region difficult to reach in the winter, the report
said. K2 is also a refueling base with a runway long enough for large
military aircraft, the paper pointed out. Pentagon spokesman Lawrence Di
Rita said the US military does not depend on one base in any part of the
world. afp
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_31-7-2005_pg1_6
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