Nearly 500 experts and officials from around the world gathered for the 49th Munich Security Conference on Friday to discuss security issues related to Syria, Mali and Iran.

Officials including Joint Special Representative of the United Nations and the League of Arab States on Syria Lakhdar Brahimi, French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, the National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces President Sheikh Moaz Al-Khatib, and Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi are scheduled to attend the event.

"The appalling violence in Syria and Iran's nuclear program are topics that will be of critical importance over the next months, and maybe years," said Wolfgang Ischinger, chairman of the Munich Security Conference.

US Vice President Joseph R. Biden, at his first visit to Europe since Barack Obama's second-term as US president began, will give a speech in the conference on Saturday, and is expected to hold bilateral talks with Brahimi, Salehi, as well as Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

On Friday, Biden urged Iran to return to negotiation table in an interview with German Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily, warning that time window for "successful diplomacy" would be kept open, "however, not unlimitedly."

The ongoing crisis in Europe, rising powers in Asia and Latin America, and cyber security will also be discussed.