Battered by failed coup, Erdogan meeting with 'frenemy' Putin

Vladimir Putin is expected to meet Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the first time in almost a year, as the two nations continue to walk towards reconciliation.

The two are to meet on 9 August in Putin's home town of St. Petersburg, Russia's second-largest city, although an agenda has not yet been confirmed by officials.

"The agenda has not been discussed yet ... but beyond all doubt, there is much to talk about," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a conference call with reporters, referring to the planned Putin-Erdogan meeting.

"This will be the first meeting after that collapse in our relations, the first one after the leaders of the two nations turned over that page," Peskov said. "Therefore, it's possible to say with confidence they won't lack topics for discussion."

Economy Minister Alexei Ulyukayev confirmed next month's meeting as he negotiated with officials from both nations in Moscow on Tuesday.

Mehmet Simsek, Turkey's deputy prime minister who was attending the meeting said his visit was part of ongoing attempts to reconcile and mend ties that severed with Moscow after the downing of a Russian jet in November last year.

"We are here to improve our relations and to bring them to an even higher level than before Nov. 24," Simsek said at the start of a meeting on Tuesday with his Russian counterpart Arkady Dvorkovich.

Earlier this month, the first Russian flight carrying tourists to Turkey since the diplomatic crisis erupted eight months ago landed in the Mediterranean resort of Antalya.

Russia banned the sale of agency tours to Turkey as retaliation for Ankara shooting down a Russian warplane but the move was reversed on June 30 after Putin lifted the ban, allowing the once-bustling trade between the two countries to resume following eight months of tension.

This followed a letter sent by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Moscow in which contained an apology for the downing of the jet.