Representatives of the new Kyrgyz authorities are holding preliminary negotiations with President Askar Akayev about the possibility of him stepping down from his post as president, Kyrgyz parliamentary speaker Omurbek Tekebayev said at a meeting with OSCE Chairman-in-Office and Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel in Bishkek on Thursday. Tekebayev earlier said he was prepared to hold talks with Akayev. \"I am prepared to negotiate with Akayev, but only if this is an official decision made by the Kyrgyz parliament,\" the speaker said. Tekebayev said that only the Kyrgyz parliament could initiate or support negotiations with Akayev. \"I am prepared to negotiate as a speaker instructed by the parliament, but I am not going to initiate this process as a private individual,\" he said. (Interfax)