Trump seriously considering Iran's offer of indirect nuclear talks

WASHINGTON - The White House is seriously considering Iran's proposal for indirect nuclear talks, while significantly increasing US forces in the Middle East in case President Donald Trump chooses to conduct military strikes, Axios reported on Wednesday, citing sources. 

Meanwhile, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, the situation on the Korean Peninsula as well as Iran's nuclear program, the Russian foreign ministry said late on Tuesday.

Wang is on a three-day visit to Moscow where he also met with President Vladimir Putin, the latest in a series of top-level meetings between the two powers in recent years aimed at deepening strategic cooperation amid shifts in the geopolitical landscape.

China and Russia said last month that nuclear talks with Tehran, demanded by the United States, should only resume based on "mutual respect" and all sanctions ought to be lifted.

"(The ministers) touched on individual regional issues related to the situation on the Korean Peninsula, Iran's nuclear program, the state of affairs in Central Asia," the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement, without providing further detail.

"The talks were held in a friendly and open atmosphere, characteristic of Russian-Chinese relations. The overlapping - or closeness - of positions on the main issues of bilateral cooperation and the global agenda was emphasized."