ISAF Flights Temporarily Suspended at Kyrgyz Air Base

International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) flight operations out of Manas Air Base are temporarily suspended as a result of the Kyrgyz government upheaval.  In response to violent protests throughout the country, Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev fled the country and an interim government, led by Ms. Roza Otunbayeva has taken control of the country.  The Manas Air Base has been operated by the U.S. Air Force since 2001 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.  Although Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister, has stated that in the upcoming future there would be a review of the military base lease, for now, “status quo will remain in place,” and military supply routes would not be affected.  Manas Air base has been a point of contention between the US and Kyrgyzstan twice before, once in 2006 and again in 2009.  The most recent dispute over base rights resulted in a three-fold rent increase for the United States.

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