Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is hosting talks with his Portuguese counterpart on February 26 and will discuss EU and NATO relations with Moscow and the situation in Ukraine, the countries' foreign ministries have said.
Portugal's Augusto Santos Silva has timed his visit to coincide with the closing of an exhibition at the Kremlin – Lords Of The Oceans: Treasures Of The Portuguese Empire In The XVI-XVIII Centuries, RFE/RL wrote.
Read alsoLavrov blames NATO for Russian aggression in UkraineThe Russian Foreign Ministry said the diplomats will exchange views on a variety of pressing international issues, along with bilateral ties between Lisbon and Moscow.
"It is planned to discuss in detail the bilateral agenda and outline the ways of further development of Russian-Portuguese relations," the ministry said.
"The assessment of the current state of relations between Russia, the European Union, and NATO will be an important part of the talks."
The ministry said the two will also "exchange views on the situation in Ukraine, in Syria, Libya, and various issues related to Africa."
Western nations have slapped sanctions on Moscow for its seizure and annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and its support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.
