Pahor, accompanied by three ministers and a 45-strong business delegation, plans to build political trust and cooperation during the official visit.

He and Putin are expected to discuss Syria, the Middle East peace process, Libya and the fight against terrorism. They will also broach the subject of the Western Balkans, where Pahor is to warn about a potential encounter of superpowers in the region.

The crisis in eastern Ukraine will be high on the agenda. For the EU-Russia relations to improve, it is crucial that the Minsk Protocol is implemented, Pahor believes.

The Slovenian president, who will also meet Patriarch Kirill and have a working dinner with Russian Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev, will be accompanied in Moscow by Foreign Minister Karl Erjavec, Agriculture Minister Dejan Židan and Infrastructure Minister Peter Gašperšič.

Pahor will also promote business cooperation. Executives of companies doing business in Russia will attend a conference today to discuss opportunities for closer economic cooperation.

A number of contracts are to be signed, with the total value of some EUR 650m. The companies signing the deals will include Iskratel, Riko, Gostol-Gopan, Bosio and Duol. Russian energy giant Gazprom and Slovenia's Geoplin are to close a EUR 700m deal on the importing of Russian gas to Slovenia.

Legal documents in agriculture, forestry, education and postal services are to be signed as well. The Slovenian delegation will also include the Ljubljana University chancellor, head of the National and University Library, the Ljubljana Festival director and the National Gallery director.

The delegation will travel to Saint Petersburg on Saturday to promote cultural and artistic cooperation and sign a letter of intent for the cooperation between the National Gallery and the acclaimed Hermitage museum.

Pahor will then travel to Kiev, where he will conclude his tour on Sunday. He is scheduled to hold a working meeting with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.