Iran's Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi on Wednesday expressed hope about the upcoming nuclear talks between Iran and the world powers, saying that the Islamic republic considers Iraq and China as the potential venues for the talks, semi-official Mehr news agency reported.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting, Salehi said that "I think the next round of talks would be better than the past," according to Mehr.

With Istanbul of Turkey still being one of the options for the talks, China and Iraq are also considered by Iran as the venues for the April 13 talks between Iran and the five permanent members of UN Security Council (the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China) plus Germany, known as G5+1.

Iran's state IRIB TV said Tuesday that Iraq has offered to host the upcoming nuclear talks between Iran and the G5+1, but Iraq's Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that Tehran has asked Baghdad to host the upcoming round of talks between the six world powers and Iran over its disputed nuclear program, instead of Istanbul.

Iran's decision on the place of the talks will be announced after Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili consults it with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Salehi was quoted as saying by Mehr.

On Wednesday, Iranian lawmaker Alaeddin Boroujerdi told Iran's Arabic language Al-Alam satellite TV that, because of Turkey's anti-Syria positions, Istanbul is not Iran's option for the next round of nuclear talks. He said that Iran has proposed Baghdad as the venue for the talks, and if G5+1 agrees, Baghdad will be the place for the talks.

Before that, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Saturday in Saudi Arabia that six world powers and Iran had agreed on meeting in Istanbul on April 13 to resume their stalled talks over Tehran's controversial nuclear program.

But on Monday, Mohsen Rezaei, the former rival of Iran's incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2009 presidential elections, called on Tehran's nuclear and foreign policy officials to change the venue of the upcoming talks with the world powers from Istanbul to another regional capital like Baghdad, Damascus or Beirut.

"Given the fact that our friends in Turkey have failed to fulfill some of our agreements, the talks between Iran and the G5+ 1 is better to be held in another friendly country," Rezaei, also former chief commander of Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), was quoted as saying by the local semi-official Fars news agency.

Offering Istanbul as the venue for the upcoming talks with the G5+1, by the Iranian officials, might give this wrong impression to the West that Iran is in a weak position and Istanbul is Iran's only option, said Rezaei on Monday.

"Hence, Baghdad, Damascus and Beirut are more suitable than Istanbul for holding talks (with the world powers)," said Rezaei who is currently the secretary of Iran's Expediency Discernment Council which has mainly an advisory role to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic republic Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Last Thursday, Khamenei informed visiting Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan that he wanted Iran's nuclear negotiations to take place in Istanbul. Iran's foreign minister also said Tehran considered Istanbul as the best option to host the upcoming nuclear talks between Iran and the G5+1 last week.

Yet, on Monday, media quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying that time and venue for Iran-G5+1 has not been finalized despite earlier remarks of U.S. secretary of state. The reports said that time and place for the talks has been proposed by the G5+1 and Iran is yet to decide.

The last round of nuclear talks between Iran and the G5+1 was held in Istanbul in January 2011 but ended up in vain. The round before that, in late 2010, was in Geneva.

On Tuesday, Boroujerdi, head of Iran's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, said that Iran's nuclear issue would not be the only topic in the upcoming talks between Iran and the world's major powers.

Topics like campaign against terrorism, illicit drug smuggling as well as the issue of global energy resources will be discussed during the next round of talks between Iran and the G5+1, said Boroujerdi.