Outgoing Secretary General of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) George Robertson arrived in Moscow on Wednesday on a farewell visit.
The visit is aimed at celebrating the demise of Cold War stereotypes and forging a relationship between the new NATO and the new Russia, Robertson said after his arrival.
The NATO chief said he has seen many changes in relations between Moscow and NATO, which have now entered a new phase of close cooperation after a cooling following the Kosovo crisis.
Robertson said one of the good things about the current NATO-Russia Council is that the sides can have an open dialogue on all issues.
During his two-day tour Robertson was due to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Thursday and attend a Russia-NATO conference before holding talks with the Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov and Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov.
He is also scheduled to meet with deputies of Russia's State Duma (lower house of parliament) and visit an army unit.
He will invite Putin to attend the Russia-NATO Council summit to be held in Istanbul next spring.
Earlier on Wednesday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Yakovenko said Robertson's visit to Moscow proves of "stable relations" between Russia and NATO.
Robertson's Russia trip is part of his farewell tour of 40 countries with which NATO cooperates.
He will leave his position at the end of this year and will be replaced by Dutch Foreign Minister Jaap de Hoop Scheffer on January 1, 2004.