MOSCOW, September 24. /TASS/: Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold a meeting with his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro on September 25, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
"Maduro will make a working visit, there will be a one-on-one meeting with Putin tomorrow, followed by Russian-Venezuelan talks in the form of a working lunch," he said.
According to Peskov, the parties will discuss bilateral relations. "We have some joint projects that are being implemented, and there also are other aspects of cooperation to discuss," Peskov said, adding that no documents were planned to be signed following the talks.
He emphasized that the leaders "will certainly exchange views on regional issues, particularly those related to the Ibero-American region, including direct foreign interference in the region’s affairs."
Maduro announced earlier that while in Russia, he would meet with Putin and Russian businessmen.
Crisis in Venezuela
Tensions in Venezuela started escalating in late January, after Juan Guaido, an opposition leader and parliament speaker whose appointment to that position had been cancelled by the country’s Supreme Court, had declared himself interim president.
Several countries, including the United States, Lima Group members (excluding Mexico), Australia, Albania, Georgia and Israel, as well as the Organization of American States, recognized him. Maduro, in turn, blasted the move as a coup staged by Washington and said he was severing diplomatic ties with the US. On February 4, most of the European Union member states recognized Guaido as Venezuela’s interim president
In contrast, Russia, Belarus, Bolivia, Iran, Cuba, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Syria and Turkey voiced support for Maduro, while China called for resolving all differences peacefully and warned against foreign interference. The United Nations secretary general, in turn, called for dialogue to resolve the crisis.
