Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrived in Dhaka on Thursday on a two-day work visit which is seen as an important development amid the changed global scenario. Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen received his Russian counterpart at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport around 6:17pm.

This is the first visit to Bangladesh by any Russian Foreign Minister since independence. The two foreign ministries will hold a bilateral meeting at a hotel in Dhaka this evening. After the meeting, they will jointly hold a press briefing and will proceed for dinner at the same venue.

The Russian Foreign Minister will meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday morning. He will visit Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi before departure on Friday. Bangladesh and Russia will discuss issues including food, fertilizers, fuel, and the Rohingya crisis. “We will discuss the complex situations that have come across the world since the Ukraine crisis. We will highlight the problems that we have,” said Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen.

Recalling a long-standing relationship with Russia, he said Bangladesh can request Russia to find a peaceful solution to the Ukraine issue as soon as possible. The two countries will discuss prospects for development of bilateral relations and exchange views on the most pressing regional and international issues, said the Russian Embassy in Dhaka on Tuesday.

Earlier, Foreign Minister Momen said Bangladesh would raise the Rohingya issue during the visit of Lavrov, the world’s longest-serving foreign minister. “We will have a bilateral meeting the day he arrives here. We have many bilateral issues to discuss. We have the Rohingya issue, too,” FM Momen said.

The Russian Foreign Minister will attend the G20 Summit in New Delhi on September 9-10 after completing his visit to Bangladesh. Lavrov was scheduled to visit Bangladesh on November 23 last year, mainly to attend the 22nd IORA Council of Ministers meeting, held in Dhaka on November 24. But the visit was called off at the last minute.