BERLIN - German Chancellor Angela Merkel will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin near Berlin later this week, the German federal government spokesperson Steffen Seibert said Monday.

The two leaders will meet at the German Federal Government's guest house in Schloss Meseberg outside Berlin on Saturday afternoon, announced Seibert.

It will be the second meeting between Merkel and Putin after they met in May in Sochi.

A joint discussion will focus on current foreign policy issues, including issues concerning Ukraine and Syria, as well as the gas pipeline Nord Stream 2, which has been criticized by United States.