MOSCOW (AP) — Kyrgyzstan’s president said Tuesday his country is ending U.S. use of an air base key to military operations in Afghanistan — a decision with potentially grave consequences for U.S. efforts to put down surging Taliban and al-Qaida violence. A U.S. military official in Afghanistan called President Kurmanbek Bakiyev’s statement “political positioning” and denied the U.S. presence at the Manas air base would end anytime soon. The United States is preparing to deploy an additional 15,000 troops in Afghanistan.——Contact the news staff at [email protected]