Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani is finalizing with Japan his preparations for a visit to Tokyo, officials in Tehran said Monday. The visit, which would be the first such trip in two decades, will likely take place around December 20, after Rouhani visits Malaysia for a Muslim leaders summit in Kuala Lumpur, according to media reports in Japan and Iran.

“This trip [to Japan] is being finalized,” AFP quoted Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi as saying in Tehran. Iranian government spokesman Ali Rabiei said discussions would focus on “expanding economic relations” between the two countries.

The visit “has nothing to do with issues such as negotiations with America,” Rabiei said. “However, our Japanese friends usually convey messages or initiatives, which we welcome… and seriously examine,” he added, stressing the bilateral focus of the visit.

Rouhani would be the first Iranian president to visit Japan since 2000.