Russia may open additional military base in Kyrgyzstan

Published May 24th, 2005 - 08:06 GMT
Al Bawaba
Al Bawaba

Russia has discussed opening a second military base in Kyrgyzstan to help fend off "terrorist threats" in the volatile region, a senior Kyrgyz official said Tuesday.

 

Anvar Artykov, governor of the Osh region in southern Kyrgyzstan, said the Kyrgyz government had yet to make a final decision on the issue.

 

"There has been preliminary talk about a military base in Osh, about a Russian anti-terror unit here," Artykov said during a news conference. "The issue is yet to be considered at the government level."

 

Kyrgyzstan hosts both U.S. and Russian military bases, located about 20 miles apart.