Iran's Pezeshkian Asks Modi to Use India's Contacts for Peace

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian urged Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to use India's extensive diplomatic contacts to help steer warring parties back toward dialogue during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Kyrgyzstan on Monday. The meeting, their first face-to-face talks since the conflict between the United States and Iran began, focused on regional security and the path to peace. According to an Iranian readout of the meeting, President Pezeshkian told Prime Minister Modi that Tehran's focus has been on ensuring peace and security and resolving issues through dialogue. "We believe that the continuation of war is in the interest neither of us, nor of the region, nor of humanity," Pezeshkian stated. He criticized the United States, saying that instead of using diplomatic mechanisms, Washington has "chosen the path of war, insecurity and imposing their will through force." Pezeshkian also alleged that certain groups within the United States see the continuation of conflict as serving their own interests and seek to perpetuate it.