Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has arrived in Venezuela for talks with President Hugo Chavez, BBC reported.
Mr Medvedev will also visit Russian ships moored in the Caribbean.
The visit is part of a Latin American tour aimed at boosting Russia's presence and trade ties in a region of strategic importance to the US.
He travelled from Brazil where he and President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva held talks on boosting trade and technical co-operation.
Russian warships, including the nuclear-powered cruiser Peter the Great, sailed into Venezuelan waters on Tuesday, greeted by a 21-gun salute.
Military co-operation is likely to be high on the agenda of Mr Medvedev's talks with President Chavez.
Russia is already a major arms supplier to Venezuela, with contracts worth some $4.4bn (£2.39bn).
During his visit to Caracas, Mr Medvedev could sign an accord under which Russia would help Venezuela build a nuclear energy plant.
The two countries already co-operate closely on energy matters, with their state-owned energy companies embarking on joint enterprises.
At talks in Rio de Janeiro, President Medvedev and President Lula expressed their view that the "BRIC" countries - Brazil, Russia, India and China - should hold their first summit in Russia in 2009, Reuters reports.
"The financial crisis, which we haven't started and we are not to blame for, affected the global economic situation and we are forced to react," Mr Medvedev told reporters.
"We agreed with President Lula that we will co-ordinate our efforts with Brazil in fighting the crisis and creating a new global financial architecture."