"The leaders will discuss key issues on the international agenda, including the situation in the Caucasus," the source said. "They will openly exchange opinions on ways to restore peace and stability in the region, undermined by Georgia's aggression against the people of South Ossetia."
Moscow launched a five-day operation to "force Georgia to accept peace" after Tbilisi attacked South Ossetia on August 8 in an attempt to regain control over the republic, which split from Georgia in the early 1990s. A number of Russian peacekeepers and a reported 1,600 South Ossetian residents died during the conflict.
The source said Medvedev and Merkel would also discuss details of a draft agreement on collective security in Europe, proposed by the Russian president on June 5 in Berlin.
According to the source, the agenda will include Russia's recently strained relations with NATO and the European Union as well as issues of cooperation against modern challenges and threats, including the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, international terrorism and drug trafficking.
The Russian and German leaders last met in mid-August in Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi, where they discussed the situation surrounding South Ossetia.
