Kyrgyz to vote on US base next week

Kyrgyzstan's parliament will vote next week on whether to shut a US air base, an important staging post for US troops fighting in Afghanistan, Kyrgyz officials said yesterday.

Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev announced closure of the Manas base in Moscow on Tuesday after securing financial aid from Russia, Kyrgyzstan's former Soviet master and traditional ally.

Russia, irked by the US military presence in Kyrgyzstan, which it regards as part of its strategic sphere of interest, has been exerting pressure on Bakiyev for some time to close the base down.