Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, has embarked on a seven-day trip to Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan armed with a raft of proposals to broaden energy co-operation and beat off competition for central Asian natural gas supplies.

The president flew yesterday to Astana, the Kazakh capital, and is due to visit Ashkhabad, the Turkmen capital, and Turkmenbashi and Aktau, two growing oil towns on the Caspian coast.