MOSCOW, September 29 (RIA Novosti) - Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold bilateral meetings with the heads of Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Iran during the Caspian summit in Astrakhan on Monday, according to the president's aide.
"A meeting with Aliev [Ilham Aliev, president of Azerbaijan] is scheduled," Vladimir Putin's aide Yury Ushakov reported Friday.
"Meeting with Aliev is important. Our contacts have become significantly more active. Thus, just several days ago, there was a meeting of an intergovernmental commission in Baku," Ushakov added.
He also mentioned that bilateral meetings with Iran's President Hassan Rouhani and Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow are planned.
Strengthening of economic ties, in particular, cooperation in peaceful atom relies with Iran and delivery of Russian oil and gas equipment to Iran will be discussed. Moreover, political situations in Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq will be reviewed, according to the aide.
Presidents of Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan will meet at the Caspian summit in Astrakhan, southern Russia, on September 29. The summit will be focused on cooperation between the countries and progress in implementation of the decisions, taken at the previous summit in Baku in 2010.
