Kazakhstan Stepping Up In Kyrgyzstan's Implosion

Be honest, you don't know the difference between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, except that one is falling apart, and the other is giving us overflight rights.

Kazakhstan has decided to open its airspace to U.S. military aircraft ferrying supplies to American troops serving in Afghanistan, it was decided on Sunday at a meeting between President Barack Obama and his Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev in Washington.
The permission granted by Kazakstan means that U.S. planes en route to Afghanistan can now use the polar route instead of flying along the indirect route through Europe, which would save precious time and fuel for moving supplies to forward locations in the war-ravaged country.

The meeting, the first between the two leaders, took place on the eve of the Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) hosted by Obama and attended by leaders from 47 nations that opens on Monday.

"This will save money, it will save time, in terms of moving our troops and the supplies needed into the theater," Mike McFaul, one of Obama's security advisors told reporters.

By: Brant