Lima  - Russia was seeking to revive "privileged" ties with Latin America, which had been neglected after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Monday.

"The time has come to restore these relations. These are the states with which we would like to have special, privileged relations," he said.

Medvedev, who was in Peru to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit over the weekend, was to travel to Brazil Monday and then on to Venezuela and Cuba, two longtime adversaries of the United States.

His visit to Caracas coincides with the start of joint naval exercises in the Caribbean between Russia and Venezuela.

The United States has expressed reservations about closer military ties between Russia and Venezuela and has criticized Moscow's selling of weapons to Caracas.

"I don't think there's any question about who the region looks to in terms of political, economic, diplomatic and as well as military power," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. If the Venezuelans and the Russians want to have ... a military exercise, that's fine, but we'll obviously be watching it very closely."

At the sidelines of the APEC summit in Lima, Peruvian officials also took advantage of Medvedev's visit to raise the issue of closer military cooperation. The Kremlin said it hoped to use the visit to boost military ties with Peru.

Russia has long wanted to beef up its military ties with Latin America. So far, that has mostly translated to weapons deliveries and joint maneuvers with Venezuela. (dpa)