US state secretary to hold talks with Kyrgyz president.

BISHKEK, December 2 (Itar-Tass) - President of Kyrgyzstan in
transition Roza Otunbayeva will hold talks with US Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton here on Thursday. The administration of the Kyrgyz head of
state told Itar-Tass that the meeting of the two politicians will be first
held "in a narrow and then in an enlarged format."
"The main topic of the president's conversation with the US secretary
of state will be the expansion of bilateral partnership, including in the
economic sphere," Otunbayeva's administration noted.
Within her one-day visit, Clinton will also intends to meet with
teachers and students of the Kyrgyz-American University of Central Asia
and visit the US airbase at Bishkek airport that last year was renamed
into the Transit Centre.
The US embassy to Kyrgyzstan told Itar-Tass that the US secretary of
state from November 30 to December 3 had planned to take part in the OSCE
summit in Astana, as well as, besides Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, to visit
Bahrain and Uzbekistan.
Kyrgyz officials have declined to specify the agenda of the
forthcoming meeting of Otunbayeva with Clinton. Meanwhile, many local
political analysts believe that Kyrgyzstan and the United States have many
issues that require detailed discussion, in particular, the future of the
Transit Centre. Until last summer, it was a US Air Force Base. About a
year ago, the Kyrgyz leadership announced its intention to close the base,
however, as a result of long and closed to the Kyrgyz public negotiations
with the United States, the facility was just renamed. It is not excluded
that the reason for the "cosmetic reorganisation" Washington's consent to
increase the annual amount paid for the leased facilities.
Experts also believe that another topic of the conversation of the
Kyrgyz president and US secretary of state may the American side's
assistance in the strengthening of democratic institutions in Kyrgyzstan.
Over the past five years the republic has survived two revolutions, as a
result of which its two presidents were forced to flee abroad with their
families. Besides, about a year ago, Bishkek and the Pentagon considered
the possibility of construction in southern Kyrgyzstan of a training
centre for special task force units of the Kyrgyz army sponsored by the
American side. However, after another revolution in the republic this
April and the opposition's coming to power, the discussion has been
suspended. The Kyrgyz authorities also do not hide that they are
interested in receiving from the US side of feasible economic assistance,
which can be used to cover the budget deficit and restore the economy and
infrastructure of Osh and Jalal-Abad. These southern regional centres were
grossly damaged during the June riots and clashes between the Kyrgyz and
ethnic Uzbeks residing in the region.
Transit Centre at Manas (formerly Manas Air Base and unofficially
Ganci Air Base) is a United States military installation at Manas
International Airport, near Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, primarily
operated by the US Air Force. The base was opened in December 2001 to
support US military operations in the ongoing war in Afghanistan. It has
hosted forces from several other International Security Assistance Force
member states as well. The base is a transit point for US military
personnel coming and going from Afghanistan. The base has good recreation
facilities for soldiers (internet cafes, wireless internet, pool tables,
free video games, telephones to DSN lines that allow a coalition forces to
call their homes at little or no cost). The base has a large dining
facility, gymnasium and a chapel. There is even a library where books and
magazines are available for the active duty airmen there. Several events,
such as the shooting of a local civilian and rumours of fuel dumping, have
led to strained relations with some of the local population. Regional
powers such as Russia and China have been pushing for the closure of the
base since 2005. In February 2009, the Kyrgyz Parliament voted to close
the base after the two governments failed to agree on a higher rent for
the property. American and Kyrgyz officials continued negotiations after
the announcement, and on 23 June a tentative agreement was reached. Under
the new arrangement the United States will pay $60 million for continued
use of the facilities, three times the previous rent. Additionally, Kyrgyz
forces now handle security in the areas surrounding the facility while
American forces continue to provide security for the facility, and the
site is now called a "transit centre" instead of an "air base."
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.No reasons to suspect Iran of seeking nuke wpns - Putin.

MOSCOW, December 2 (Itar-Tass) - We have "no grounds to suspect Iran
of seeking to possess nuclear weapons," Russian Prime Minister Vladimir
Putin said in an interview with CNN's Larry King.
"Our position is open, and Iran knows it. We will continue to
cooperate with all participants in this process until the complete
solution to this problem," the prime minister said answering a question
about whether Russia shares the concerns of other countries that Iran is
moving towards becoming a nuclear power.
According to Putin, "Iran has been implementing its nuclear programme
for twenty years now and of late, in recent years, Iran has in one way or
another indicated its readiness to engage in dialogue with the
international community and with the IAEA. Yes, we are aware that
questions remain concerning the early stages of the programme and we share
the IAEA's desire for exhaustive answers."
"You will, of course, know that we are concerned about any indication
of proliferation, about any possibility, even if it is a theoretical
possibility for the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. This
applies to absolutely all states, including Iran. At the same time we have
no grounds for suspecting Iran of seeking to possess nuclear weapons. But
we are cooperating with all our partners, including the United States,
within the framework of the United Nations," said the Russian prime
minister.
"As you know, so far we have managed to agree on the decisions taken.
Our position is open and Iran is aware of it. We will continue to
cooperate with all participants in this process until the problem is
entirely resolved. I very much hope that this resolution will transpire. I
think this is in the interests not only of Iran's neighbour, Israel, which
has great fears about nuclear programmes, and the other parties involved
in this process but also those of Iran and the Iranian people," Putin said.
The RF prime minister also noted, "I see nothing reprehensible,
nothing that infringes upon Iran's national interests, in it opening up
all its programmes and responding adequately to the legitimate interest
that the international specialist agency, the IAEA, has taken in its work.
I see nothing to fear here, but at the same time I am still of the opinion
that Iran has the right to pursue nuclear programmes under the supervision
of international organisations."
In the interview broadcast on Wednesday evening, Vladimir Putin also
spoke of the threat of an arms race, as well as his thoughts about the
recent disclosure of US diplomatic cables by the whistle-blowing site
Wikileaks.
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