Petraeus In Uzbekistan To Talk Afghan Routes

U.S. regional military chief General David Petraeus arrived in Uzbekistan on Tuesday for talks on new supply routes for U.S. troops in Afghanistan and other security issues, the U.S. embassy there said.

The visit follows a decision earlier this month by Kyrgyzstan, another Central Asian state near Afghanistan, to close an important U.S. air base used as a staging post for operations in Afghanistan.

An embassy spokeswoman in Tashkent said Petraeus would meet Uzbek President Islam Karimov and other top Uzbek officials to discuss the situation in Afghanistan as part of his visit.

"He is here in Tashkent to listen to Uzbekistan's perspective ... on the situation in Afghanistan," she said.

A Western diplomat told Reuters earlier this month that Washington was close to signing a deal with Uzbekistan that would allow U.S. non-military rail cargo to pass through Uzbekistan on its way to neighbouring Afghanistan.