Russia's Medvedev, Germany's Merkel discuss economic cooperation

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and German Chancellor Angela Merkel held an unofficial dinner on Monday night in Germany and then discussed issues of economic cooperation, Medvedev's spokeswoman said on Tuesday. "The leaders discussed Russian and German economic cooperation in the context of bilateral agreements and documents planned to be signed as a result of official bilateral talks on Tuesday," presidential spokeswoman Natalia Timakova said. She said Medvedev and Merkel discussed the current economic situation in the European Union, adding that "the leaders particularly exchanged their opinions on the economic situation in Germany and Russia." "The president and the chancellor also discussed international issues, first of all, the situation in Libya," Timakova said. Libya has been rocked by fighting between pro- and anti-government forces since mid-February. An international military operation began on March 19 following a UN resolution and has been extended until September.