By Bernama
United Nations : UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday sets out on a tour during which he will pay his first-ever official visit to Russia in his capacity of the administrative head of the world body.
The visit will be made from April 9 to 11, the press service of the UN Secretariat announced.
Ban Ki-moon is expected to hold a series of meetings with representatives of the Russian leadership. The UN chief is also scheduled to hold talks with Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Lavrov.
Besides, the UN Secretary-General is to meet with the leaders of public organisations in Moscow. He is also expected to make a speech in Moscow State University.
Quoting a Radio UN interview, the Russian news agency Itar-Tass quoted Ban as saying that Russia’s contribution to the UN peacekeeping activities. He said the situation in Sudan’s Darfur province is one of matters that he is planning to touch upon during the forthcoming talks in the Russian capital. The UN chief also intends to discuss the state of affairs in Kosovo.
When touching upon the subject of the Middle East, Ban Ki-moon stated his support for Russia’s initiative aimed at convening an international conference on the Middle East peace process. The UN chief also pointed out that he is ready to discuss any questions with the Russian leadership.