Kazakhs promise fight against Islamists

The Kazakh defence minister, Sat Tokpakbayev, has said that Kazakhstan will provide necessary assistance to Kyrgyzstan, if Islamic militants again invade Kyrgyz territory.

After talks with his Kyrgyz counterpart Esen Topoyev Mr Tokpakbayev said there was no immediate threat to the Kazakh or Kyrgyz borders, but the situation could worsen.

The two ministers signed a protocol on military cooperation, under which they agreed to hold joint military exercises.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service