MOSCOW

Russia plans to hold a conference on counter-terrorism this year with the participation of representatives from Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and Turkey, a government official said on Monday.

The conference is expected to be held in Moscow at the level of the heads of parliaments of these five countries, Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of State Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament, said during a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.

"Fight against terrorism and drug trafficking will be discussed. It is necessary to solve these problems through dialogue, development of common approaches and harmonization of legislation," he added.

Meanwhile, during the press conference Ghalibaf said he delivered to Volodin a message from Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei for Russian President Vladimir Putin.