MOSCOW, July 4 (Xinhua) -- President Dmitry Medvedev said Saturday he hopes next week's meeting with his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama would bring new prospects for Russian-U.S. ties.

    "We believe that our summit will achieve concrete results which will open up new prospects for the development of our relations for the benefit of Russian and U.S. citizens and in the interests of peace and progress,” Medvedev said in a letter to congratulate Obama on the U.S. Independence Day holiday.

    "I sincerely hope that together, in a spirit of mutual respect and trust, we will be able to give the Russian-American partnership new momentum and bring it to a qualitatively new level," he said in a statement released by the Kremlin.

    The Russian president also called for cooperation between the two countries, saying it is particularly important to address critical issues such as nuclear proliferation, terrorism and regional conflicts.

    Obama is scheduled to visit Moscow on July 6-8.

    It will be his first visit to Russia since taking office in January.