Kyrgyzstan: Bishkek Wants New Russian Base Situated Near Uzbekistan

Kyrgyzstan wants a planned Russian base to be built in southern Batken Province, as close to the Uzbek border as possible. However, the location is still subject to negotiation, Kyrgyzstan's ambassador to Moscow, Raimkul Attakurov, said during an August 5 news conference.

"All the evil comes from the border. Our request is to locate the proposed military base closer to the border, where transit routes lie. Besides, some basis for development has already been already created," the RIA Novosti news agency quoted him as saying on August 5. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

Attakurov also said Kyrgyzgaz and Gazprom have agreed to the Russian company taking a 75-percent-plus-one-share stake in Kyrgyzgaz. A joint venture to construct the controversial Kambarata hydroelectric power complex on the Naryn River will also be created by the end of the year, he added. Uzbekistan opposes both the base and the construction of the Kambarata power plant. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].