President Of Iceland To Pay First Official Visit To Russia Next Year

According to RF Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov, President of Iceland Olafur Ragnar Grimsson is going to come to Russia next year on an official visit, the first in the history of our bilateral relations. On Saturday, Igor Ivanov held talks with his Icelandic counterpart Halldor Ausgrimsson. Moscow is interested in ensuring that President of Iceland's visit should stimulate expansion of the trade and economic ties between the two countries. There is a vast and hitherto untapped potential in this area, RF Foreign Minister said. According to Igor Ivanov, he "was pleased" to learn that his Icelandic counterpart Halldor Ausgrimsson maintained contacts with such remote Russian regions as Kamchatka and Chukotka. In RF Foreign Minister's opinion, these contacts clearly show that Reykjavik is interested in developing cooperation with all Russian regions, irrespective of how distant they are from Iceland.