Poison gas traces found at US base in Uzbekistan

Nerve agent and mustard gas traces have been found at a US base in Uzbekistan and investigators are trying to determine if any of the thousands of troops who have passed through were exposed, American military officials said yesterday.

So far, no US soldiers have reported any symptoms of exposure, said Colonel Roger King.

The contamination at Khanabad air base, near the city of Karshi, was thought to be from chemical weapons stored there by the former Soviet Union, Col King said. Uzbekistan became independent in 1991.

US forces moved into the base in October, and over the winter it was a main hub for the American-led campaign in neighbouring Afghanistan. At one point, up to 5,000 troops were stationed there, though Col King said the number now is less than 1,000.

A chemical weapons team using "sniffer" devices found traces of nerve gas vapour on Friday at a bunker on the edge of the camp, far from any soldiers. The next day, similar vapours were detected in a hardened hangar in which a headquarters had been set up.(AP)