The government said it was banning imports of uranium-bearing graphite for treatment at the Kara-Balta ore reprocessing facility.

"The ban on imports of uranium-bearing material to Kyrgyzstan applies not only to Britain but to other countries, including Germany," a Kyrgyz government spokeswoman told AFP.

The announcement came after British media announced that British Nuclear Fuels would be sending 1,800 tonnes of such material from its first generation Magnox reactors to Kara-Balta.

The ban also applies to a plan approved by a Kyrgyz government commission in June by which a German firm RWE NUKEM GmbH was to send 1,700 tonnes of a similar material for reprocessing at Kara-Balta.

"The decision was made due to the absence of guarantees concerning the safe-keeping of the uranium-bearing material and in accordance with international security norms," the government's statement read.

While environmental groups and Kyrgyz Prime Minister Nikolai Tanayev had opposed the imports, Kara-Balta's management said they anticipated much-needed funds from such deals with which they could renew the decaying facility.

This impoverished country's Soviet-era nuclear sites are seen as threatening continued growth in the number of foreign tourists attracted to its spectacular mountain landscapes.

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