Secretary of State Colin Powell arrived in Kazakhstan Saturday on the second leg of a Central Asian tour after securing a commitment from Uzbekistan to open a bridge crucial for aid deliveries to Afghanistan.
Powell, who is on a tour of allies in the U.S.-led war on terrorism, flew into Astana international airport in freezing temperatures to be met by Kazakh Foreign Minster Yerlan Idrisov.
He will hold talks with President Nursultan Nazarbayev before flying on to Moscow Sunday. A Kazakh Foreign Ministry official said the two men would discuss cooperation in fighting terrorism and economic issues. Powell arrived from the Uzbek capital Tashkent, where he secured a pledge to open Uzbekistan's Friendship Bridge to boost humanitarian deliveries to the Afghan population.
Powell, who met Uzbek President Islam Karimov, also raised several areas where Uzbekistan could improve its human rights record, notably registration of civic groups, respect for religious belief and letting political parties organize, a senior state department official said.
Powell went straight to Kazakhstan from Uzbekistan after canceling a planned stopover in Kyrgyzstan because of bad weather. But he spoke to Kyrgyz President Askar Akayev by telephone from the aircraft.
State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said Powell thanked Akayev for Bishkek's support in the war on terrorism particularly last Thursday's vote in parliament to allow the US-led coalition to use its airbases in military and humanitarian operations for one year. Bureau Report