MOSCOW, August 1. /TASS/. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s visit to Russia, announced last year, was rescheduled several times due to divergent schedules with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, however, preparations for it are active, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told TASS.

"It was in the works before, but it didn’t work out with coordinating the schedules. Then, the election campaign started," Peskov explained. "However now, when he has already won the election, it is possible to assume that preparations will be more active, and the visit will happen when the leaders will find it convenient," he added.

Earlier, Putin, congratulating Maduro on his re-election, told the Venezuelan leader that he has always been a "welcome guest on Russian soil."

Alexander Shchetinin, director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Latin American department, told TASS that Maduro’s visit to Russia had been planned with exact dates to be coordinated. In April, Venezuelan Ambassador to Moscow Jesus Rafael Salazar Velasquez noted that Maduro was very interested in a personal meeting with the Russian leader. He noted that the timeframe will depend on the two presidents’ schedules.