SS Blog international

Summary-

Russia, a neutral country at most times, wants to help the US in Afghanistan. They made this decision after the ex-Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan tried to evict a US air base, which would help them end the war quicker. The closing of this base interrupts with Obama’s plan to send 30,000 troops to Afghanistan. “Russia and other (alliance members) are ready for full-fledged comprehensive cooperation with the United States and other coalition members in fighting terrorism in the region. This fight must be comprehensive and include both military and political components. Only in the case will this have a chance to succeed," Medvedev said. No one knows if “full fledged” meant that his soldiers were ready, or if they were the best out there. The President said that Obama was making the right decision in testing the Afghans stability. Russia wants to help the Americans because they believe that the Americans are right, and not the Afghans. The Americans put the base, called Manas, after 9/11 to keep an eye on the Uzbekistani people. They expelled the troops in ’05 after a dispute over human rights. While the fight for Manas is continuing, thousands of troops are trying to get a new base for 15,000 troops and 500 tons of cargo. The agreement with the people is that they have to pay $17.4 million to them every year until 2011.

Work Cited-
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090204/ap_on_re_as/as_kyrgyzstan_us_base