Mindful of Azerbaijan's crucial role along a supply route for NATO forces in Afghanistan, Gates said that he was visiting the country "partly because of concerns in Azerbaijan that we weren't paying enough attention to them."

Gates, speaking to reporters on his plane before landing Sunday, said he planned to meet President Ilham Aliyev to "reassure him that's not the case."

Azerbaijan provides a vital link in ferrying NATO-led troops and cargo by land and air to Afghanistan, and US officials are anxious to defuse any strains in the relationship.

In his meeting with Aliyev scheduled on Sunday evening, Gates said he would present a letter from US President Barack Obama and convey a message that Washington viewed Baku as a strategic partner.

"It's important to touch base and let them know they do play an important role in this international coalition," said Gates, referring to the fight against Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan.

When Michele Flournoy, US undersecretary of defence for policy, paid a visit to Baku in April, government officials made no secret of their frustration at what they see as Washington's lack of attention, he said.

"They made their views pretty clear to her," said Gates, who was due to spend less than 24 hours in Baku before flying on to London.

Gates is the highest-ranking US official to travel to Baku since Obama took office last year and he said more top-level visits would follow.

His visit was part of a sustained US diplomatic effort to ensure supply lines stay open amid a US buildup of 30,000 reinforcements in Afghanistan.

A senior US defence official told reporters Azerbaijan's government did not want to be seen merely as a convenient route to Afghanistan and had asked the administration to play a bigger role in resolving its dispute with Armenia over the Nagorny-Karabakh region.

Human rights groups have accused the US administration of overlooking abuses in strategic countries across the region -- including Azerbaijan -- in its drive to secure supply lines for the NATO-led war effort in Afghanistan.

Gates said Washington had to balance its interests and denied that any country was in a position to dictate to the United States, as military planners had organised an array of transport networks.

"Because of the multiple avenues that we have developed, I don't feel that anybody in particular has us over a barrel," he said.

"But clearly the ability to overfly Azerbaijan, the ability to use ground transportation to Azerbaijan, as with Russia, Kyrgyzstan, is obviously important."

Tens of thousands of cargo aircraft have flown over Azerbaijan for the Afghan war, with planes ferrying 100,000 US and allied troops and personnel through the country's airspace last year, Pentagon officials said.

US commanders have sought out bases and transit lanes in Central Asia to ease the military's reliance on supply routes through Pakistan, where Islamist militants often stage attacks on convoys.

The northern network of roads, rail lines and flight routes includes Russia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Tajikstan and Kyrgyzstan.

Azerbaijan had complained that it was owed money under its deal with Washington for the use of the country's air space, saying commercial contractors had failed to pay necessary fees.

US officials and private contractors recently settled the dispute, with Baku receiving two million dollars (1.67 million euros), including about 900,000 dollars paid by the US government, officials said.

Gates also said the Pentagon was taking a closer look at contracts in Central Asian states after allegations the former leadership in Kyrgyzstan had skimmed millions off of fuel sales for US forces at the Manas air base.

The US military has stopped flying aerial refueling tankers out of Krygyzstan as a new government there presses to renegotiate a fuel contract for the Manas base.

Gates said so far the suspension had not "caused any problems at this point."

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News