Russian president expected to visit Kazakhstan on October 15 - Kazakh foreign minister
GORNO-ALTAISK. May 29 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to visit Kazakhstan in mid October, Kazakh Foreign Minister Yerlan Idrisov has said.
"We need to finally solidify our agreement," Idrisov said during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Idrisov said Kazakhstan is hoping that Putin will visit on October 15 before the CIS meeting.
Idrisov also said he plans to discuss with Lavrov in Gorno-Altaisk a number of issues, including the preparations for the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) expected to be held in Ufa in July.
"Ufa is becoming a center of world politics. We are seriously preparing for Ufa," the Kazakh minister said. "I think it will be interesting to all of us," he said.
Lavrov, for his part, said he is hoping that he and his Kazakh counterpart will be able to work productively and rest in Altai.
"I am sincerely happy to welcome you here, in the land that I love so much and where I spend my short vacations. Nevertheless, one day spent here counts as one month. I hope that, besides our work on the tasks our presidents have set us, we can enjoy this wonderful nature today," he said.