Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he discussed ways to reach a “peaceful solution” to the Iranian crisis with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araqchi during a meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) foreign-ministers gathering in Tianjin, eastern China, on Tuesday. A statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry and subsequent media remarks by Lavrov indicated that the two diplomats reiterated their view that issues surrounding Iran’s nuclear programme must be settled solely through political and diplomatic means. The talks also covered wider regional and international security concerns. The bilateral followed a burst of sideline diplomacy at the SCO meeting. Araqchi separately met China’s president as well as the foreign ministers of India and Pakistan, while Lavrov held talks with Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, who said the two countries were satisfied with the trajectory of their ties. Moscow has repeatedly offered to mediate in the standoff between Tehran and Western capitals and has proposed storing Iranian uranium abroad. The latest consultations keep the nuclear file high on the agenda ahead of the SCO leaders’ summit slated for late August.