President Viktor Yanukovych said Saturday that Ukraine would work with Russia, Moldova and Serbia to expand its cooperation with the three East European nations.

Yanukovych made the remarks during separate talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Moldovan President Nicolae Timofti and Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic.

When meeting Putin, Yanukovych said his country is ready to boost cooperation with Russia, as the two sides share a wide rage of common interests.

"I'm sure we have a lot of mutual interests, which can create conditions for the development of our economies and promote mutual cooperation in various spheres," he said.

For his part, Putin said the two post-Soviet states have a long common history and rich cultural ties and should carry on their traditional friendship.

"I am pleased to note that we have good personal contacts and good contacts at the governmental level. We have also many common issues that need to be solved," Putin said.

In his talks with Timofti, Yanukovych said the Ukrainian side regards Moldova as a reliable friend and Kiev is willing to contribute more to the development of ties with Chisinau.

Timofti said Ukraine-Moldova relations enjoy a solid foundation and expressed hope that the ties will develop smoothly in the future.

During his meeting with Nikolic, Yanukovych said Kiev is willing to strengthen bilateral economic and trade cooperation with Belgrade on the basis of mutual benefit.

Nikolic said his country hopes to improve collaboration with Ukraine in such sectors as trade, investment and heavy industry.

Belgrade highly values the traditional friendship with Kiev and appreciates Ukraine's stance on the issue of Kosovo, he added.

"Nothing can worsen our relations. Nothing ever can divide our peoples," Nikolic said.

Russian, Moldovan and Serbian leaders arrived in Kiev earlier in the day for a working visit to take part in a regional cultural holiday.