Merkel to pay working visit to Russia

Putin and Merkel will discuss pressing issues on the international agenda, including the escalation of tensions in the Middle East following a U.S. airstrike at Baghdad's airport on January 3.

MOSCOW, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel will pay a working visit to Moscow on Saturday at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin said Monday.

Putin and Merkel will discuss "pressing issues on the international agenda, including the situation in Syria and Libya, as well as the escalation of tensions in the Middle East following a U.S. airstrike at Baghdad's airport on January 3," it said in a statement.

The two leaders will also exchange opinions on Ukraine and the agreements reached at the Normandy format summit in Paris on Dec. 9, the statement said.

Tensions soared in the Middle East after a U.S. airstrike near Baghdad International Airport killed Qassem Soleimani, commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Quds Force, on Jan. 3, with Iran vowing to take "tough revenge."

At the last meeting of the Normandy Four leaders in Paris after a three-year interval, Ukraine and Russia agreed on the full and comprehensive implementation of a ceasefire in Donbass by the end of 2019.

The Ukrainian government completed a prisoner swap with rebels in the country's eastern regions and received 76 detainees on Dec. 29, the first prisoner exchange between the two sides since 2017. ■