Azerbaijan, Baku, April 13 / Trend E. Kosolapova/
The U.S. military staff will leave the Manas airport in Kyrgyzstan in 2014, and a large civilian air hub will be created there, Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev said in his interview to Itar-Tass.
"The next year the military staff will be withdrawn from the airport, and we are going to create a civil transportation hub at the airport," he said.
According to Atambayev, Kyrgyzstan has proposed to Russia, the United States and Germany to take part in the hub creation.
"The U.S. is still considering the proposal, however, some Russian organizations have already expressed interest," he said.
According to Atambayev, the project should be implemented to secure working places in the airport, strengthen the airport and ensure new revenues to the state budget.
The American air base, renamed later as the transit center, was established at the Manas international airport in Bishkek in December, 2001. The base includes over 1,200 soldiers and is important for NATO's Enduring Freedom Operation in Afghanistan. The agreement on the deployment of the U.S. air base in Kyrgyzstan is valid until 2014.