Russian President Vladimir Putin was to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Friday, as Moscow and Europe make rare joint efforts to save the Iran nuclear deal.
The pair’s first face-to-face meeting in a year will take place less than a week before French President Emmanuel Macron is due to visit Russia, The Local reported.
It will take place in Putin’s Sochi residence and is expected to be dominated by US President Donald Trump’s decision to pull out from the international Iran agreement.
The fallout over the historic deal is a rare topic for rapprochement between Europe and Moscow, whose relations are marred by disagreements over the Syria conflict, Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and the subsequent war in eastern Ukraine.
As part of the historic 2015 deal, Tehran agreed to curb its nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions.
The Europeans have urged Tehran not to abandon the deal.
They also want to protect their economic interests in Iran, threatened by Washington’s reintroduction of economic sanctions.
The Kremlin has in recent days increased its diplomatic efforts to try to save the agreement it describes as “crucial for regional stability and for the stability of the entire world”.
Add new comment
Read our comment policy before posting your viewpoints