PrairiePundit

BBC: Nato has signed deals with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan to use their territory for evacuating vehicles and military equipment from Afghanistan. The agreement will allow the military alliance to bypass Pakistan, which has blocked Nato from using its territory in a disagreement over drone strikes. Nato will begin pulling troops and equipment out of Afghanistan in earnest later this year. This deal means it can return equipment to Europe overland via Russia. Nato Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen announced the Central Asian deals on Monday. He told a press conference: "These agreements will give us a range of new options and the robust and flexible transport network we need." The US-led Nato operation in Afghanistan is due to wind down completely by the end of 2014. Tens of thousands of vehicles, containers and arms will have to leave them. The force has already started pulling out some equipment. ...  This gives them a way to avoid the P...

BBC: The US says Kyrgyzstan's interim leader has promised to honour key security agreements, days after she came to power following a bloody uprising. US officials said Roza Otunbayeva had vowed not to interrupt operations from a military base the US uses to supply troops and supplies to Afghanistan. The US stopped troop movements from the base, near the capital Bishkek, last week during an anti-government revolt. ... It makes sense for them to continue the arrangement. The country is desperately short of funds and it needs the revenue generated from leasing the air base. I suspect the new leader will be more stable than the old regime.