Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu will be holding meetings with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Antalya on Thursday and discuss bilateral relations, as well as the Syrian crisis, on the sidelines of the 5th Meeting of Turkey-Russian Federation Joint Strategic Planning Group.

The two ministers will meet in Antalya's Alanya district and address a number of issues, including cooperation on counter-terror measures and solution of the Syrian crisis, as well as cultural exchange, and energy.

A statement by Kremlin has said that the two leaders will also focus and exchange ideas on the Middle East, North Africa, Ukraine, Caucasus region, Central Asia and the Cyprus issue.

The statement highlighted that high-level meetings between Turkey and Russia enhance and contribute to normalization of relations between the two countries.

Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım's visit to Russia, which is expected to take place on December 6 and 7 will also be discussed by the two ministers.

Relations between the two countries hit a low after Turkey downed a Russian warplane for violating its airspace near the Syrian border on Nov. 24 last year. In response, the Russian government announced sanctions on Turkey, including a ban on exports. The normalization process, which began in June, has paved the way for the lifting of sanctions.