President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is scheduled to visit Russia on March 9-10 and is expected to meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin during the two-day official visit.

Both leaders are due to discuss the bilateral ties between Turkey and Russia, energy deals, the situation in Syria and Iraq, as well as cooperation against terrorism.

Centuries-long Turkish-Russian relations entered a strained period when a Russian warplane operating in Syria, was downed by Turkish jets for violation of Turkish airspace in November 2015.

In the aftermath, both countries took necessary steps to improve bilateral relations, especially after Russia supported Turkey and its democratically-elected government during the July 15 failed coup attempt.

Turkey and Russia brokered a nationwide ceasefire in Syria which came into force last December.

Erdoğan and Putin are due to discuss the situation on the ground in Syria and improve cooperation efforts to sustain and enhance the ceasefire in Syria, as well as bolstering of billions-dollars worth bilateral trade especially in the fields of energy.