Russian media outlets appear intent on trying to turn the US-operated Manas transit center in Kyrgyzstan into a campaign issue in the Central Asian nation’s upcoming parliamentary elections. Recent reports distributed by Russian sources appeared designed to stir up anti-American sentiment and potentially increase pressure on the Kyrgyz provisional government to close the facility, which serves as a key logistics hub for US and NATO operations in Afghanistan.

US and Kyrgyz officials reached agreement in July 2009 on a new deal in which Washington pays $60 million per year to the Kyrgyz government for the use of Manas. The term is for five years, but it is subject to annual renewal. [For background see EurasiaNet’s archive].
Interim President Roza Otunbayeva announced shortly after assuming power in April that the lease would be renewed in 2010, but went on to stress that the ultimate fate of the facility would be decided following national elections. The parliamentary vote is scheduled for October 10.

Kyrgyz candidates on the campaign trail have so far avoided trying to score political points by calling attention to the presence of US forces on Kyrgyz soil. That hasn’t stopped Russian outlets in recent days from producing provocative reports concerning Manas.

One report, distributed September 10 by the Itar-Tass news agency, alleged that the Manas lease, originally “designed for five years,” was secretly extended by Bishkek and Washington in July.

A US State Department spokesperson portrayed the Russian reports as wild exaggerations. “This was simply the first annual renewal of the five year agreement that was concluded last year, in July 2009,” the State Department official told EurasiaNet.org.

Similarly, a spokesman for the air base confirmed the lease was subject to an annual renewal in July 2010, as per the leasing agreement negotiated in 2009. A well-placed Kyrgyz political source, meanwhile, dismissed the Russian news reports as “old news.”

Observers say the Russian reports may be indicative of a new Kremlin push against Manas. [For background see EurasiaNet’s archive].One Bishkek analyst noted that a Russian media campaign played a crucial role in undermining former president Kurmanbek Bakiyev prior to his administration’s downfall in April. [For background see EurasiaNet’s archive].

“If we talk about the Russian mass media influence, it is obvious that the events in April were caused largely by the influence of Russian media outlets. It was an informational war,” said Mars Sariev, a Bishkek-based political analyst.

The Kyrgyz provisional government, Sariev added, is keen not to antagonize the Kremlin. “In order not to create a negative scene with Russia, Kyrgyzstan is offering Russia the longed-for opportunity to build a base in Osh,” Sariev said. [For background see EurasiaNet’s archive].

Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov was scheduled to meet with his Kyrgyz counterpart, Abibulla Kudaiberbiyev, on September 13. The two were expected to discuss the parameters of a base deal. In late August, US defense officials revealed that plans to construct an American-run anti—terrorism training facility had fallen through. [For background see EurasiaNet’s archive].