Bishkek bows to pressure, renews US lease for airbase

The US has renewed its lease on an airbase in Kyrgyzstan but it has been forced to pay more than three times the previous rate.

The Manas base near the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek is seen as vital to the US-led war effort in Afghanistan.

35,000 US troops use the base each month on their way in and out of the war zone.

Last year, Kyrgyzstan briefly ordered its closure.

But Bishkek eventually buckled to the pressure and leased the base to the US after Washington agreed to pay $60 million a year.

The US military has been using the airbase since December 2001.