Kyrgyz parliament approves end to U.S. airbase

BISHKEK, June 20 (Xinhua) -- The Kyrgyz parliament agreed Thursday to close the U.S. Transit Center at Manas international airport next year.

Parliament passed a bill to end the lease agreement between Kyrgyzstan and the United States for the Manas Transit Center in June 2014, with a 90-1 vote.

Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev has said several times the United States should withdraw its troops unconditionally from the central Asian country when the agreement expires in 2014.

The transit center is located 24 km north of the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek. Since 2001, the base has been supporting military operations in Afghanistan.

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