Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad extended his congratulations to Yasuo Fukuda on his appointment as Japan’s new prime minister.

An Iranian parliamentary delegation left Tehran for Italy this morning to attend talks with their counterparts in Rome.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Mohammad Ali Hosseini said Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to arrive here in Tehran Monday night to attend the summit of the heads of Caspian Sea littoral states.