USA

US Defense Chief Weighing Possible Talks With Russian Counterpart

FILE - Russia's Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu (L), and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov are seen during a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. National security adviser John Bolton in the Kremlin in Moscow, June 27, 2018.

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on Friday he was considering the possibility of the first talks in years between the defense chiefs of the United States and Russia, a possibility first reported by Reuters on July 17.

"I am considering meeting with my counterpart, but there's been no decision," Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon.

The last time a U.S. defense secretary even spoke telephonically with a Russian defense minister was in 2015, as relations between Moscow and Washington soured. It was not immediately clear when the last face-to-face meeting took place.