Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold telephone talks at 1000 GMT to discuss cooperation in business and energy sectors, a Greek government official said on Friday.

The talks come hours before Tsipras addresses parliament on the state of negotiations with lenders for aid amid a fierce backlash from his party over a proposal offered by the euro zone and the International Monetary Fund.

Russia has been speculated as a potential source of funding for Greece if it fails to reach a deal with EU and IMF lenders. Athens has denied plans to turn to Moscow for help.