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Vladimir Putin: Birthday with heads of state
Photo: GAVRIIL GRIGOROV / AFP
On his 70th birthday this Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin is being celebrated by state guests in his hometown of Saint Petersburg in the Constantine Palace.
An "informal summit" of the heads of state of the "Commonwealth of Independent States" (CIS) is planned in the metropolis, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Thursday.
He had previously stressed that Putin would spend the anniversary working on numerous appointments.
Several phone calls are also planned for Friday.
Putin may want to demonstrate once again that despite his war of aggression against Ukraine, he is not isolated internationally.
The CIS, a successor organization to the Soviet Union that collapsed a good 30 years ago, also includes the authoritarian Central Asian states of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon celebrated his 70th birthday on Wednesday.
The confederation of states also includes Belarus, which is considered the last dictatorship in Europe, as well as the southern Caucasus states of Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Peskow initially did not name any names from the guest list of the "informal summit".
"Tomorrow the President will work in St. Petersburg," said Peskov.
The meeting with the heads of state is planned for around noon.
"This will be a very important date in the context of preparations for the CIS summit planned for next week," said Peskov.
The meeting is scheduled to take place on October 14 in the Kazakh capital of Astana.
aeh/dpa