ANKARA, February 6. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s impending visit to Turkey will be a good opportunity for the two countries to discuss bilateral and international issues, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said during a press conference broadcast by the Anadolu news agency.
"Putin’s visit is scheduled for the near future. It is important to maintain a dialogue on various topics, meaning the Black Sea, grain, obviously Ukraine, as well as a number of other bilateral issues. There are a lot of topics, and it is important to get on the same page on them on a regular basis," he said.
According to Fidan, the Russian leader's visit is "part of the regular dialogue between the countries." "You know that we have ongoing cooperation with Russia in very many areas, first of all in energy. But there are also problematic issues that we need to talk about. These are Syria, the Caucasus, the Middle East. And here we need to constantly reconcile positions in order to solve problems and prevent the escalation of tensions," he said. The top diplomat added that "from this point of view, Turkey attaches great importance to the continuation of constant dialogue" with Russia, both at the level of the Foreign Ministry and at a higher level.
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier that all nuances of trade relations with Turkey will be discussed during Putin's upcoming visit to the country. A diplomatic source told TASS that Ankara expects to discuss the construction of a gas hub and a discount on Russian gas. Problems with payments through Turkish banks that Russian companies have encountered are also among the possible topics.
According to Turkish media reports, the trip is scheduled for February 12. Peskov confirmed that the visit is being prepared, but did not give a specific date.