Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov left Moscow late Saturday for cooperation and security talks in Malaysia, the first leg of a tour that will also take him to the United states, the ITAR-TASS news agency reported.

Ivanov will spend three days in Malaysia, where he will hold talks centering o­n military cooperation between Moscow and Kuala Lumpur, security and nuclear non-proliferation in the Asia-Pacific zone, and the fight against terrorism.

He is to meet o­n Monday with Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and Defense Minister Najib Tun Razak for talks which will also include the North Korean problem, ITAR-TASS quoted a Russian defense ministry official as saying.

Ivanov will leave Malaysia o­n Tuesday and fly o­n to the United States for a three-day visit. - AFP