Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro signed a strategic partnership agreement in the Kremlin on Monday in a ceremony broadcast on Russian state television, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
During their talks, they discussed issues related to energy and oil, the Russian news agency Interfax reported.
Earlier today, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists that the strategic partnership agreement would be “significant, full of content and a very important framework document“, without giving further details.
Venezuelan President Maduro, a staunch Putin ally, promised “a new impetus“ in relations between the two countries before his meeting with the Russian president in Moscow on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany, Agence France-Presse reports.
“This is the best moment in our relations in 80 years“, Maduro said, promising “a new impetus“ and “a leap forward for cooperative relations in all areas“.
“We have promising areas of cooperation [...] energy, transport, the pharmaceutical industry, logistics, healthcare and, of course, humanitarian aid. "In general, we are satisfied with the way our contacts are developing," Putin said.
Relations between Moscow and Caracas have become closer since the rule of former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez (1999-2013) and have continued to expand under Maduro, AFP reports.
Russia has expressed its support for Nicolas Maduro, although much of the international community has not recognized his controversial re-election in July 2024.
For his part, Maduro has supported Russia before and after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
In the next few days, Russia is due to welcome the leaders of about thirty countries to mark the 80th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.
The culmination of these celebrations will be on May 9, when a large military parade will take place on Red Square in the presence of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.