MOSCOW — Iraqi Foreign Minister Mohammed Ali al-Hakim paid a formal visit to Moscow on Jan. 29 and 30. The foreign minister and his delegation met with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, Vice Prime Minister Yuri Borisov, members of the Senate and other officials in various meetings. Obviously, security and economic cooperation — in the oil and gas industry in particular — are the foundation of the relations between the countries.

During his press conference with Lavrov, Hakim expressed his gratitude for Russia’s help in the fight against the Islamic State and called the relations between the nations as a “strategic partnership.” Hakim said this year will mark the 75th anniversary of the countries' bilateral ties. He invited Lavrov to Baghdad; the top Russian diplomat accepted.

In addition, a session of a Russian-Iraqi intergovernmental commission is penciled in for the Iraqi capital in March, and a high-level meeting is likely to take place in Moscow — though decisions needed to actually organize the events are not yet set in stone.

The ministers emphasized the importance of an information and coordination center in Baghdad that involves Russian, Iranian, Iraqi and Syrian specialists.