MOSCOW, October 26 (RIA Novosti) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov sets off on Monday for a brief working visit to Sri Lanka to discuss a number of bilateral issues including fight against drug trafficking, the ministry said on Friday.

Ministry's spokesman Andrei Nesterenko said that during the top diplomat's visit, a memorandum of understanding between the countries' emergencies ministries is also expected to be signed.

Russia and Sri Lanka are also expected to draw up agreements on air transport, legal aid in criminal cases, tourism cooperation, trade, and economic partnership.

During his visit, Lavrov is scheduled to meet with President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama.

Nesterenko said Russia's joint stance with Sri Lanka at the United Nations earlier this year amid international criticism over the country's military operations against Tamil Tiger terrorists serves as a "clear example" of bilateral interaction.

In May the Sri Lankan military defeated the Tamil Tiger separatists and killed their leader in an operation that brought to an end 25 years of civil war. International rights groups accused the military of shelling the rebels in the war zone, killing large numbers of civilians who were being used as human shields.