Russian TV says U.S. spying at Kyrgyzstan air base

By Guy Faulconbridge

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian state television accused the United States on Friday of using its only remaining air base in Central Asia as cover for a large-scale spying operation.

Rossiya television released a clip of a documentary to be aired on Sunday which it said shows how the United States ran intelligence operations from the Manas air base in Kyrgyzstan, used for supplying foreign troops in Afghanistan.

Kyrgyzstan told Washington in February to close the air base after it secured a $2 billion economic aid package from Russia, a setback for the United States as it seeks new supply routes.

"Eight years ago under the pretext of the war in Afghanistan the United States opened its air base at the Manas airport," a Rossiya statement said.

"But this was only the start. Subsequently the Americans in Kyrgyzstan launched a wide-scale intelligence operation."

State television is seen as a mouthpiece for the Russian authorities. But airing the film days after President Dmitry Medvedev's first meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama is likely to raise speculation of tensions within Russia's elite.

A U.S. defense official dismissed the allegations as ridiculous and noted that the TV report surfaced just as U.S. and Kyrgyz officials resumed dialogue over the base's future.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the issue publicly, said U.S. and Kyrgyz representatives resumed talks this week. He gave no details.