Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit France September 22-23. He is set to meet with his French counterpart, Jacques Chirac, on Friday and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will join the two presidents for a trilateral meeting on Saturday.
The French president has said the dialogue on the Iran issue should be maintained, inviting Tehran to reciprocate by suspending uranium enrichment activities.
This position is very close to Moscow's, so Chirac and Putin will have many points of convergence in the search for a solution to the Iran nuclear problem, the source said.
Putin and Chirac are also expected to discuss the situation in Lebanon and the Middle East as a whole.
"Here the positions of France and Russia also largely coincide, so the two heads of state can be expected to speak in favor of resuming the peace process and implementing the 'road map' developed by the Quartet of international mediators, comprising Russia, the U.S., the EU and the UN," the French official said.
He said Chirac and Putin would also discuss relations between Russia and the EU pending a new partnership agreement to replace the current Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between Russia and the EU, which expires in 2007.
"The French leadership regards Russia as a privileged partner and believes that Russia should be more closely involved in European affairs in the political, economic and other realms," the official said.
Putin last visited France in 2005. He held talks with the leaders of France, Germany and Spain.
