Kyrgyzstan says US planning military base to train Kyrgyz soldiers in Central Asian nation

Kyrgyzstan unveils US military training base plan

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan — Officials in the impoverished Central Asian nation of Kyrgyzstan say the United States plans to build a $5 million military base for training local troops to assist in the fight against international terrorism.

Kyrgyzstan already hosts a U.S. military base in Manas, outside the capital Bishkek, used by Washington as a regional hub for the U.S.-led war in nearby Afghanistan.

A Kyrgyz Defense Ministry statement released Wednesday says the training base — complete with barracks, dining hall, classrooms and an assault course — will be constructed near the southern town of Batken.

No timeframe was mentioned.

The Kyrgyz government last year backed off a threat to evict U.S. forces from Manas after Washington offered to increase the rent it pays threefold.