Iranian president to visit Russia for gas summit, meet Putin

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian will depart for Russia on Monday night to attend a summit of gas-exporting countries in Moscow and hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.

Pezeshkian is scheduled to attend the summit of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) on Tuesday, where he is expected to deliver a speech.

The Iranian president may also hold bilateral meetings with leaders of other participating countries during his one-day visit.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced Friday that Pezeshkian and Putin would meet in Moscow this week.

In a post on Instagram, Araghchi said the meeting would follow up on discussions held during Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's visit to Tehran on Oct. 19.

The talks are expected to focus on bilateral cooperation and regional and international developments.

The GECF is an intergovernmental organization bringing together major natural gas-producing countries, including Iran, Russia, Qatar and Algeria.