March 13, 2002	Wednesday	Zilhaj 28, 1422

MANILA, March 12: US forces should clear out of Central Asia after the military campaign against the Al Qaeda, a former senior US government official said on Tuesday.

The post-Sept 11 US military presence in countries like Kyrghyzstan and Uzbekistan risked creating unnecessary tension with regional powers Russia and China, Asia Society president Nicholas Platt said.

“It’s right for the US to have military presence in those areas for the purpose of pursuing the conflict in Afghanistan, but what do you do after that?” he said at a function in Manila.

“I guess the answer is, we have to tread very carefully and make it clear that when we’re finished with these bases, then we’ll move back out. Others should not have any ambitions either,” Platt said.

Platt served as deputy assistant secretary of defense and acting assistant secretary of state during a career that also included postings as US ambassador to Pakistan and the Philippines.—AFP