GENEVA (AP)

Russian state media report that the top national security advisers for U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are meeting in Geneva to discuss subjects including the presence of Iranian troops in Syria.

Trump's national security adviser, John Bolton, and Russian counterpart Nikolai Patrushev were meeting Thursday as a follow-up to a summit between the Russian and U.S. leaders in Helsinki last month.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told Russian news agencies that Bolton and Patrushev will be discussing Iran's presence in Syria, among other things.

Iran and Russia are two leading backers of Syrian President Bashar Assad. Bolton is a fervent critic of Iran's leadership, saying it supports terrorism, and has defended the U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal involving Russia, China, Germany, France and Britain.