MOSCOW, April 4 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and his visiting Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev told media that they would reinforce military and energy cooperation during a joint press conference here Tuesday

    "We will work further to strengthen the integration process on the post-Soviet territory," said Putin. "Energy is one of the most fundamental areas of our cooperation."

    Nazarbayev emphasized the joint exploration of "three major (oil) fields in the Caspian -- Kurmangazy, Kvalinskoye and Centralnoye." He also backed maintaining Russian military bases in Central Asia and the participation by Russian companies in Kazakh oil operations.

    Russia and Kazakhstan signed an agreement that provides for the joint development of the Kurmangazy field, a project worth 23 billion U.S. dollars. Enditem