Russian President Vladimir Putin will make an official visit to Turkey early next month, the Kremlin said. Putin is to meet with Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the Sept. 2-3 visit, the Russian presidential press service said. They will discuss bilateral relations and international issues, it said. Putin also plans to visit the Aegean port city of Izmir, the statement said. The visit will come days after Putin hosts French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder for a three-way summit at his Black Sea residence on Aug. 30-21. Putin met in February with Abdullah Gul, the first Turkish Foreign Minister to visit Russia since 1996, and said trade ties were developing fast.
