Bloomberg Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the US is prepared to negotiate with North Korea without preconditions, but the Trump administration would first want a “quiet period” without nuclear or missile tests for discussions with Kim Jong Un’s regime to begin. “Let’s just meet. We can talk about the weather if you want,” Tillerson said in a speech at …

WASHINGTON / Reuters The United States is voicing skepticism about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s announcement of a major withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria and is arguing that his declaration of victory against IS was premature. Putin, during a surprise visit to Russia’s Hmeymim air base in Syria, declared that the work of Russian forces was largely done in backing …

BEIRUT / Reuters Iran’s southeastern province of Kerman was hit by multiple strong quakes on Tuesday and Wednesday, injuring at least 18 people and damaging some 20 houses, state media reported. The first quake of magnitude 5.9 struck on Tuesday morning 35 miles (56 km) north of Kerman, a city with a population of more than 820,000. The tremor, initially …