MOSCOW, June 4. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold a meeting with the heads of leading foreign news agencies in St. Petersburg on Wednesday, June 5, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov told reporters.

This is a traditional event organized by TASS on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) for many years.

"During the forum he [Putin] will hold a traditional meeting with the heads of international news agencies. This will take place on June 5 at 2:00 p.m. (11:00 a.m. GMT), that is, before the [official] opening of the forum," the Kremlin aide said.

According to the organizers, the heads of news agencies of about a dozen countries, including those unfriendly to Russia, will take part in the meeting.

Putin's meeting with representatives of leading foreign news agencies will be held for the eighth time on the SPIEF sidelines. The participants of the meeting freely discuss with the Russian leader the most topical issues of Russia's domestic and foreign policy. Putin has always highly assessed such a format of communication. The last meeting in this format was held online in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.