キルギス側からの視点 |
そういう中で以下の論文は貴重です。まあこの人も大使をやっていたのでかなりプロ・アメリカな視点を持っていることは間違いないんですが(苦笑
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Last Flight Out of Kyrgyzstan
How the U.S. Lost a Vital Air Base
By Baktybek Abdrisaev
Friday, February 20, 2009; Page A23
For two weeks, the U.S. struggle to hold on to its last air base in Central Asia has made headlines, and the vote in Kyrgyzstan's parliament yesterday to close Manas Air Base will spark still more coverage. Analysts have rushed to portray this as a new chess match between a resurgent Russian Federation and a recalibrating United States; just as a new American president seeks to bolster the U.S. presence in Afghanistan, the principal land corridor from Pakistan is severed through a bridge bombing and the likely air base closure threatens the Obama administration's plan. The oversimplified but oft-repeated explanation is that Kremlin pressure is the source of Washington's predicament.
Having served as Kyrgyzstan's ambassador to the United States from 1996 to 2005, I know a great deal about the establishment of the base and the struggle to keep it open. It's true that our friends in Moscow were never happy that the base was opened and that they have exerted pressure to close it. But a nation's decision to offer a friend territory for military purposes involves a number of complex considerations. A base agreement rests on the shared interests of the host and the country that sends troops or supplies through it. When the base was opened in 2001, my nation was moved by several factors: Kyrgyz were deeply touched and saddened by the events of Sept. 11, and we were intent on showing support for our American friends. Moreover, we shared a common foe and a common pain: Fifty of our uniformed servicemen had been killed from 1999 to 2001 in gun battles with the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, an organization that formally allied itself with al-Qaeda and that operated out of bases in Afghanistan it maintained with al-Qaeda and Taliban support. The U.S. commitment to end those operations corresponded with the national security interests of my country. Kyrgyzstan also hoped to benefit economically from the base, a wish that was never hidden.
(中略)
Every relationship has its peaks and valleys. But one thing has consistently troubled me about the relationship between the United States and my country. Once the base was set up, I saw a fairly radical change in American attitudes. Before, Washington had consistently juggled a series of priorities -- broadly speaking, they were security concerns, economic concerns, and advocacy of human rights and democracy. But once the base was established, it became clear that while other concerns might be voiced from time to time, only one thing really mattered: the air base. In the end, this shift served neither country's interests.
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この彼は「一旦基地ができたあとは、議論が基地だけに集中してしまった」と言ってますねぇ。まあお金の問題もあるんでしょうが・・・・
沖縄撤退後(?)のシナリオを考える際には一応この辺はケーススタディとして注目しておいたほうがよさそうな気が。