[Peace] more expansion

[Dlind49 at aol.com]

Commander: Ties Growing With C. Asia
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS


Filed at 8:02 p.m. ET


TASHKENT, Uzbekistan (AP) -- The American commander in Afghanistan said 
Friday that U.S. military ties with Central Asia, where Washington has 
stationed troops and personnel, will continue to expand.

``I would expect in the future ... that we will see a continuing growth in 
military relationships between our armed forces and forces here in Central 
Asia,'' Gen. Tommy Franks told reporters in Uzbekistan's capital, Tashkent.

The Central Asian nations' support for the U.S.-led campaign in Afghanistan 
after the Sept. 11 attacks has significantly improved their relations with 
the United States. About 2,000 U.S. troops are deployed at bases in 
Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, and coalition forces are allowed to use airspace 
over Kazakhstan and Tajikistan.

The arrival of U.S. military in the region was welcomed by Russian President 
Vladimir Putin, but raised fears among many Russian politicians and military 
officials that Moscow, long the dominant power in the region, would lose its 
influence. The increased U.S. involvement in the region has also irritated 
Iran, another regional power.

On Friday in Tashkent, where he arrived after visits to Kazakhstan and 
Kyrgyzstan, Franks met with Uzbek President Islam Karimov to discuss military 
cooperation and the course of the campaign in Afghanistan.

Echoing Franks, members of a U.S. Congressional delegation that visited 
Tashkent on Friday said the United States intends to play a long-term role in 
the region.

``We informed President (Karimov) that the United States is in Central Asia 
to stay. We are committed to rebuilding Afghanistan. We are committed to 
continued economic and political reform in Uzbekistan,'' the delegation's 
leader, U.S. Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich., told reporters.