Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez told his Iranian counterpart the two states should co-operate to defeat imperialism, Iranian media said.

Chavez and Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met during an official visit by the Venezuelan leader to the Islamic Republic.

Chavez arrived after visiting Russia and Belarus.

The Venezuelan leader, who wants to forge an alliance of leftist states to counter US policies, told Ahmadinejad according to the official IRNA news agency:

'Co-operation of independent countries such as Iran and Venezuela has an effective role in defeating the policies of imperialism and saving nations.'

Ahmadinejad, whose country is embroiled in an escalating standoff with the West over its disputed nuclear programme, took a similar line.
 
 'The pillars of the global arrogance have become shaky and victory (can) be achieved with resistance and standing firm,' he told Chavez.
 
 'Global arrogance' is a term Ahmadinejad and other Iranian officials use to refer to the US and its allies, but like Chavez he did not name America in comments on IRNA.

Ahmadinejad and Chavez will take part in a ceremony to officially start construction of a joint methanol complex, it said, adding the petrochemical plant would annually produce one million tonnes of the derivative. Reuters