MOSCOW, December 24. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated his Azerbaijani colleague Ilham Aliyev on his birthday, the Kremlin press service said.

"Putin has warmly congratulated President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev on his birthday," the press service said in a statement. "The leaders expressed satisfaction with the high level of Russian-Azerbaijani strategic partnership and allied relations and agreed on continuing personal interaction," the press service added.

Putin and Aliyev will meet in person at an informal CIS summit which will be held on December 25-26 near St. Petersburg.