MOSCOW, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and his visiting Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez are expected to hold talks on Friday, focusing on military and economic cooperation, local media reported.

    The fuel and energy sector and mining industry will top the agenda, as well as military-technology cooperation and joint projects on rail and air transport, the Itar-Tass news agency cited a Kremlin official, adding that they will watch together a military exercise following the talks.

    Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has told Chavez, who is here for a two-day working visit, that Moscow will consider cooperation with Venezuela on the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

    "We are ready to consider opportunities for cooperating on the use of atomic energy...which could be extended to a third market,"the Interfax news agency quoted Putin as saying at a meeting with Chavez late Thursday.

    Energy, high technologies, engineering and petro chemistry are other promising areas of economic cooperation with Venezuela, Putin said, noting that Russian energy giant Gazprom will start drilling operations in the Gulf of Venezuela in late October.

    Putin also promised to continue military-technology cooperation with Venezuela, pledging to fully implement agreements on cooperation between the naval forces of the two countries.

    Four Russian warships have left the North Fleet's main base on Monday for a joint exercise in Venezuela, following another joint drill and patrolling over the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic by Russian strategic bombers.

    A Kremlin official said earlier this week that Russia will extend Venezuela a 1 billion U.S. dollars loan to implement a military-technical cooperation deal, under which Moscow and Caracas have already signed contracts worth 4.4 billion U.S. dollars in two years.

    "Latin America is becoming a noticeable link in the whole chain of the emerging multipolar world," Putin was quoted as saying.

Venezuelan president, Russian PM discuss bilateral cooperation 


    CARACAS, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who is visiting Russia, discussed bilateral relations and international issues on Thursday with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

    According to reports reaching here, Chavez, on his international tour, arrived in Russia Thursday from China. Full story