(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - "The base in Kyrgyzstan should not be used against Iran. That is why we are talking about the necessity to withdraw foreign troops from the civil airport after 2014 and close the base," Atambayev said on Saturday.
The US base, located at a major airport in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek, is reportedly being used as a transit center for Washington’s operations in Afghanistan. Currently, the base accommodates about 1,200 American soldiers.
Atambayev’s comments came as Russia’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said on February 22 that US might use Manas airbase for an attack against Iran.
Meanwhile, Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambaev said in a Monday meeting with visiting US delegation headed by Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Susan Elliot that "no foreign troops" should remain at the Manas airbase after 2014.
The United States and the Israeli regime have repeatedly threatened Iran with military action if the country does not halt its civilian nuclear program. The two, as well as their European allies, have repeatedly accused Iran of seeking military objectives in its nuclear program without pointing to any verifiable evidence.
Iran has persistently rejected such allegations, vowing a crushing response to any military strike against the country that would lead to consequences far beyond the immediate region and the Middle East.
Moreover, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei reiterated last Wednesday that Iran has never sought and will never seek nuclear weapons and considers the possession of such arms as a great sin, useless and destructive.
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