No change expected at coalition base in Kyrgyzstan Published March 30, 2005 By Donna Miles American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- The political situation in Kyrgyzstan is expected to have no impact on coalition efforts there supporting operations in Afghanistan, an official at U.S. Central Command said here March 30.Lt. Gen. Lance L. Smith said Kyrgyzstan’s new government leaders have “gone out of their way” to ensure the U.S. understands that the country’s foreign policy “is going to remain the same.”Coalition troops at Manas Air Base “have been very engaged” in watching the political situation unfold in Kyrgyzstan following the ouster of the country’s longtime president, Askar Akayev, but do not feel unsafe, he said.“Our folks do not feel threatened,” General Smith said. “They are obviously not roaming around downtown, but they do not feel threatened, and there are no indications whatsoever that our relationship will change.”Kyrgyzstan, a former Soviet possession, has provided staging sites to sustain U.S. operations during Operation Enduring Freedom. A contingent of U.S. troops at the base provides logistical support to coalition efforts in Afghanistan, officials said.The country’s political situation changed dramatically March 24 after protesters stormed the main government building in Bishkek and demanded President Akayev’s resignation following what they called flawed parliamentary elections earlier in the month.Opposition leader Kurmanbek Bakiyev announced that he had been named acting prime minister and president and chose key officials for a new government late last week.