Tuesday, June 09, 2009 BISHKEK: Kyrgyzstan said Tuesday it was open to talks on keeping a US military presence on its territory, in a possible softening of line over the eviction of a base key for coalition operations in Afghanistan."Kyrgyzstan is prepared to discuss the question of the use of its territory for assisting anti-terrorism coalition forces in Afghanistan with all interested sides," Foreign Minister Kadyrbek Sarbaev told state news agency.The Kyrgyz government had announced it was evicting the US military from the airbase at Manas after Moscow agreed to provide over two billion dollars worth of loans and aid to the impoverished former Soviet republic.Since the closure was announced, Washington has secured transit routes for non-lethal cargo through several other Central Asian states, but the agreements do not address the problem of troop and military material transport.
Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo...
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