ST. PETERSBURG, May 26 (RIA Novosti) - The defense ministers of Russia and Germany will meet Friday in Russia's second city to discuss prospects for bilateral cooperation in the defense sphere.
Sergei Ivanov and Franz Josef Jung will discuss the development of military ties under existing agreements, as well as major global and regional security issues, including Iraq, Afghanistan and other "hot spots."
A source in the Russian Defense Ministry said Russia and Germany had recently expanded collaboration in the defense sphere. In 2005, the countries held 17 joint events, and planned to increase this number to 29 in 2006, with 13 events in Russia and 16 in Germany.
Chief of the Russian General Staff Yury Baluyevsky is scheduled to visit Germany in fall this year, the source said.
Ivanov said Wednesday that Russia's defense spending in 2007 would total about 800 billion rubles ($29.6 billion), or 2.6-2.7% of GDP.
