Russia’s top diplomat Sergey Lavrov and Indian Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar will hold negotiations in Moscow on August 27, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at Thursday’s briefing on the sidelines of the North Caucasian youth forum Mashuk.

Axar.az reports citing TASS.

"The foreign ministers will discuss the ways of further promoting bilateral cooperation and synchronize their watches for the schedule of upcoming contacts," she noted. "The focus will be on the preparations for the participation of the official Indian delegation in the fifth Eastern Economic Forum that will take place in Vladivostok on September 4-6, as well as the implementation of the annual [bilateral] summit."

Zakharova said that "trade and investment, military and scientific-technical cooperation, the use of national currencies in mutual payments, promising projects in the space and energy sphere, especially in the Arctic shelf and in Russia’s Far East" will top the agenda at the negotiations.

The top diplomats will compare notes on tough issues, focusing on cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as the UN, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Russia-India-China forum. In addition, talks on the preparation for Russia’s chairmanship in BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and some regional scenarios, including the preservation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on the Iran nuclear program and the situation in the Persian Gulf zone and in Afghanistan will be on the agenda as well," the spokeswoman stressed.