Anti-Terrorist Coalition to Relocate its Kirghiz Air-Force Base Soon

The international anti-terrorist coalition's air-force base will soon be relocated from Bishkek's Manas international airport to Mramornoye (Marble) village 10 km away from the airport and 20 km north of the Kirghiz capital.

The coalition and the Government of Kirghizia are now negotiating the allocation of territory in Chuiskaya region's Sokulusky district for the purpose of building offices and barracks that would accommodate the air-force base's officers and soldiers, officials at the base noted.

The coalition's equipment and warehouses alone will remain in Manas.

The anti-terrorist coalition's first servicemen arrived in Kirghizia in December 2001, that is, soon after the United States attacked Afghanistan. Right now, about 1,500 officers and soldiers from eight countries of the world are staying at this air-force base.