Russian President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Turkey on Monday, to attend the twenty-third World Energy Congress in Istanbul upon the invitation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The two leaders will discuss bilateral relations including energy cooperation, with a special emphasis on the Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline project. The project looks to transfer Russian gas to Europe via Turkey.

The meeting in Istanbul between the two will be their third encounter since their governments agreed to normalize ties in June, after Erdogan sent a message of apology to Putin over the downing of a Russian warplane in November last year.