Venezuela President Hugo Chavez has said his country would be willing to host Russian bases, the Russian news agency Interfax reported.

"If Russian armed forces would like to be present in Venezuela, they will be welcomed warmly," Mr. Chavez told Russian reporters on Tuesday, in response to a question about whether Russia could put bases in Venezuela.

"We will raise flags, beat drums and sing songs, because our allies will come, with whom we have a common worldview," Chavez, who was in Moscow for talks with President Dmitri Medvedev, added.

"Russia and Venezuela must become strategic allies in the oil sphere and in military-technical cooperation," Chavez had said during the meeting that aimed at purchasing arms and reinforcing ties with the Kremlin.