MOSCOW - US President Barack Obama will have a breakfast meeting with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin when he visits Moscow next week, a spokesman for Mr Putin said on Thursday.

Mr Obama and the powerful Russian president-turned-premier will get to know each other at the meeting, which will last about one hour and a half on Tuesday morning, Mr Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Echo of Moscow radio.

'Mr Putin will want to share his views on the current state of Russian-US relations, drawing on his experience of dynamic interaction at the highest level as the head of state,' Mr Peskov said.

'He has huge experience in dealing with the president of the United States, his mastery of the subject is brilliant. He will find it interesting to get a sense of the new US head of state, so he can also make his small contribution to possible prospects for development.'

Mr Obama is due to visit Moscow on July 6-8 in a bid to 'reset' relations with Russia that were badly strained under the administration of his predecessor, George W Bush.

The bulk of Mr Obama's talks are expected to be with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, who took office last year, rather than with Mr Putin, who is still widely believed to play a powerful behind-the-scenes role.

During his presidency from 2000 to 2008, Mr Putin had friendly relations with Mr Bush even though US-Russian ties gradually worsened over the years.

Early on, Mr Bush once even said that he had gotten a sense of Mr Putin's 'soul.'

Under the Russian constitution, it is Mr Medvedev who oversees foreign policy while Mr Putin's role is more focused on domestic policy and the economy.

Mr Peskov said the official agenda of the meeting would cover US-Russian trade ties, adding that the two would discuss lifting the Jackson-Vanik amendment, a Cold War measure that has placed limits on trade with Russia since 1974. -- AFP