Merkel, Putin discuss Afghanistan, other issues

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin on Friday.

The talks in Moscow come amid the crisis unfolding in Afghanistan and as Russia's treatment of opposition politician Alexei Navalny and Ukraine remain a source of ongoing tension between the two leaders' countries.
The German chancellor is nearing the end of her almost 16-year-long leadership of Germany. She and Putin, who has served as Russia's president or prime minister since 2000, managed to maintain a line of communication over the years despite their many political differences.