Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek. Feb. 5 / Trend , A.Tinayev/
A dialogue with Russia on loan is not connected with the U.S. military base's withdrawal from Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyz Prime Minister Igor Chudinov said at a news conference in Bishkek on Feb. 5.
"These two events should be connected with each other. We held negotiations with Russia to get loan within last two years, while reconsidering the agreement with U.S. on its military base in Kyrgyzstan took place in 2006 and two decisions coincided on time," the prime minister said.
"Kyrgyzstan made the current decision to terminate the agreement on Manas airbase, because U.S. practically did not reacted to the country's insistent requests to reconsider some points of the agreement and on rent within a long term," he said.
Chudinov stressed that not only a finance problem was stumbling block between partners. "So far, U.S. Serviceman Zakari Hetfild who killed Kyrgyz citizen Alexander Ivanov in 2007 has not been punished. The U.S. command sent the accused to U.S. and did not allow Interior Ministry's investigators to question him. Thus far, there is not any perspective that the killer will be punished," the prime minister said.
On Feb. 4 the Kyrgyz government passed decision to close the U.S. military base in Manas. Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev publicized it at a news conference after negotiations in Moscow.
The U.S. air base was opened in the territory of the international Manas airport in Bishkek in December 2001 as part of UN mandate to support Invincible Freedom antiterrorism operation implemented by coalition forces in Afghanistan.
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