Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and visiting Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev inked a joint statement agreeing on further cooperation including investment by Japanese companies in Kazakh energy projects.

"The two governments expect Japanese companies to make proactive investment in the exploration and development of natural resources, including oil, uranium, rare metals and nonferrous metals, in Kazakhstan," the statement said.

Japan, which has virtually no natural energy resources of its own, relies heavily on increasingly expensive Middle East crude oil to power its economy, and has been seeking to diversify its sources of energy.

Japan is increasingly focusing on nuclear power despite public unease in the only country to have been attacked by atomic bombs.

"The two governments agree that cooperation in the field of nuclear power for peaceful use will be significant for strengthening a bilateral strategic and beneficial partnership," the two leaders said in the statement.

They added that such cooperation "will benefit stable supply of uranium for Japan's nuclear industry and contribute to helping Kazakhstan's strategic policy towards advanced industrialisation."

Ahead of their meeting, Japan's Toshiba Corp. agreed to study ways to boost cooperation in nuclear energy with Kazakhstan's state-run atomic company.

Under the accord, the Japanese high-tech giant and Kazatomprom will consider extending their collaboration to rare metals such as beryllium and tantalum for nuclear power plants, said Toshiba spokeswoman Hiroko Mochida.

The two will also consider jointly producing nuclear power plant components and continue discussions on further cooperation.

The latest accord was in line with the "strategic and partnership" agreement signed by the two firms in April last year, which cleared the way for Toshiba to participate in a Kazatomprom uranium mine development project.

Toshiba last year sold 10 percent of US nuclear power plant maker Westinghouse to Kazatomprom for 540 million dollars as part of a wider collaboration between the two firms.

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