-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Before this week , most Americans had likely never heard of Kyrgyzstan and even fewer could place it on a map . But the central Asian nation , which is about the size of South Dakota , is important to U.S. foreign policy for one simple reason : a vital military base through which tens of thousands of troops pass every month on their way in and out of Afghanistan . The fate of the Manas Transit Center was thrown into question Wednesday when Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev was forced to flee the capital after angry mobs seized government headquarters . Fighting between police and protesters left 75 people dead and hundreds injured , authorities said Thursday . The protesters say they are in control of the government , but Bakiev sent word Thursday from southern Kyrgyzstan that he is not abandoning his duties . The United States likely will retain use of the Manas facility even if Bakiev 's opponents secure control of the government , said Alexander Cooley , a central Asia expert at Barnard College . Latest news out of Kyrgyzstan `` It 's going to survive , but it 's going to generate a lot of noise , uncomfortable negotiations and a lot of hard bargaining , '' said Cooley , author of `` Base Politics . '' The Manas base plays a major role in internal Kyrgyzstan policy on several levels . For starters , it is a major source of income in the small nation , which has a gross domestic product of less than $ 12 billion a year , according to the CIA World Factbook . The nation ranks 143rd in the world in terms of its GDP . In exchange for use of the base , the United States provides about $ 180 million in aid to Kyrgyzstan each year , Cooley said . Although the United States does not pay rent for use of any bases in the world , Cooley said , about $ 60 million of the Kyrgyzstan aid is considered payment for access to the Manas facility . In addition , Cooley said , Bakiev 's political opponents say the United States pays about $ 160 million a year to buy fuel for American aircraft using the base . `` The base is as much an economic investment as much as it is a security investment , '' Cooley told CNN . `` Kyrgyzstan does not have a lot of economic assets . That 's why the base is important . '' But the base also has deep significance to Bakiev 's opponents , who see it as a symbol of the deposed president 's corruption and U.S. complicity in his abuse of power . `` The United States stayed silent as Bakiev built a criminal state , '' Cooley said . iReport : Are you there ? Share photos , video Political opponents believe that aid paid for use of the base went into Bakiev 's pockets , not the country 's coffers . `` That money went to companies and shady off-shore enterprises controlled by the family , '' said Cooley . `` It 's the actual site of tacit deals and corruption . '' The new government has said it will address citizens ' concerns . Kyrgyzstan has had a troubled history since shortly after gaining independence when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 . Also gaining independence that year were the three other `` stans , '' as some people commonly refer to the region : Kazakhstan , Tajikistan and Uzbekistan . `` Kyrgyzstan seemed to be in the 1990s the one bright spot , '' Cooley said . Askar Akaev , who had been president since 1990 , started off as a good leader , Cooley said , `` and politics were pretty pluralistic . Then , he started regressing . '' Akaev increasingly turned to repression . `` As they do , he stayed a few years too many , '' said Cooley . `` Bakiev was bad , but Akaev was a real thug . '' As happened this week , opponents took to the streets in 2005 and drove Akaev from power . Bakiev won election as president in July 2005 . But he , too , soon started to maneuver to increase his power and consolidate control . Demonstrations by political opponents in April , May and November 2006 led to the adoption of a new constitution that gave some of the president 's powers to parliament and the government . A year later , the parliament voted to restore some of those powers to the presidency . In September 2007 , the new constitution was declared illegal , and Bakiev resumed having the presidential powers he had inherited when taking office . `` The president then dissolved parliament , called for early elections and gained control of the new parliament through his newly created political party , Ak Jol , in December 2007 elections , '' the CIA World Factbook says . `` In July 2009 , after months of harassment against his opponents and media critics , Bakiev won re-election in a presidential campaign that the international community deemed flawed . `` Just a few months later in October , Bakiev engineered changes in the government structure that further consolidated his already considerable hold on power . '' The CIA World Factbook says concerns about Bakiev 's rule , `` included privatization of state-owned enterprises , negative trends in democracy and political freedoms , endemic corruption , improving interethnic relations , electricity generation and combating terrorism . '' That such turmoil should fall upon such a country seems incongruous to some . `` Kyrgyz are great , '' Cooley said . `` They are very hospitable . Very mild-mannered . '' The CIA World Factbook describes Kyrgyzstan as a land of `` incredible natural beauty and proud nomadic traditions . '' With an estimated 2009 population of about 5.4 million , Kyrgyzstan ranks No. 111 among nations . It is a landlocked country and entirely mountainous , with 94 percent of the nation 3,280 feet -LRB- 1,000 meters -RRB- above sea level and an average elevation of 9,000 feet -LRB- 2,750 meters -RRB- , the CIA World Factbook says . The topography includes many tall peaks , glaciers and high-altitude lakes . Nearly two-thirds of the nation 's citizens belong to the Kyrgyz ethnic group , while nearly 14 percent are Uzbek and more than 12 percent are Russian , the CIA World Factbook says . Likewise , nearly 65 percent of the people speak Kyrgyz , which is the official language . Nearly 14 percent speak Uzbek and Russian is the language for more than 12 percent . Three of every four citizens are Muslim and one in five are Russian Orthodox . Although Kyrgyzstan shares a 533-mile -LRB- 858-kilometer -RRB- border with China , most people identify with mother-nation Russia . Kyrgyzstan was formally annexed to Russia in 1876 and became a Soviet republic in 1936 . `` There 's a strong cultural affinity to Russia due to media , education and the Soviet legacy , '' Cooley said . Still , China is knocking at the door . `` China has moved in , but it 's been a very recent development , '' said Cooley . `` Last year , China did a lot more trade there than Russia did . But there 's very little cultural affiliation with China . '' There is no seeming affinity for the United States , a distant nation tied in the minds and hearts of many Kyrgyz to corruption at home . The question that remained unanswered this week was whether millions of dollars in U.S. aid would provide enough affiliation to allow continued use of the Manas Transit Center .