Kyrgyzstan will help the U.S. with cargo transportation for the antiterrorist coalition forces in Afghanistan after the closure of the Bishkek airport air base, President Almazbek Atambaev said in an interview with Radio Azattig on Thursday.
The U.S. air base, renamed as the Transit Center, was established at the Manas International Airport in Bishkek in December 2001. It is a major transport and logistics hub for the transportation of cargo and transferring the antiterrorist coalition in Afghanistan.
"Kyrgyzstan is very concerned about the future of Afghanistan, so we told the United States about our intention to help Afghanistan in terms of logistics after 2014," Atambayev said.
Meanwhile, he stressed that the country under no circumstances will extend the stay of foreign troops in its civilian airport.
"There shouldn't be a military at a civil airport. There is no such a precedent in the world," he said.
Earlier, he announced the idea of making a civil transportation hub at Manas for sending goods to Afghanistan.