Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela on Thursday invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to pay a return visit to his country to see the expanded Panama Canal.

“I hope that you, Mr President, will be able to pay a visit to our country to see firsthand the Panama Canal and the country and get acquainted with our people,” Varela said at a meeting with Putin in Moscow.

He noted that Panama had recently finished its canal expansion project and turned itself into a transportation hub as a result.

“We suppose that direct flights between our capitals will let us strengthen and further develop our bilateral relations, trade and economic cooperation,” he added.

Putin, in turn, welcomed his counterpart in Moscow and proposed discussing bilateral ties.

He also noted that Russian business people planned to meet with their counterparts from Panama later in the day as part of the Russian Chambers of Commerce and Industry meeting.

Putin also wished the Panamanian national team success in the 2018 FIFA World Cup matches.

From June 14 to July 15, Russia hosts the FIFA World Cup for the first time in history, with the matches set to be held in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Rostov-on-Don, Sochi, Yekaterinburg, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Volgograd, and Samara.

Varela, along with more than 20 world leaders, is expected to attend the FIFA World Cup opening ceremony later in the day.