U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has met with his Russian counterpart, with the two talking for more than an hour Monday to discuss contentious issues between the two countries.

Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met in Geneva to talk about the conflict in Ukraine and the shooting death of Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov. Neither man smiled as they shook hands and posed for pictures ahead of the talks.

The two last met nearly a month ago on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in Germany.

Monday’s meeting comes less than a week after Kerry told the U.S. Congress that Russian officials have lied to his face about Moscow’s involvement in Ukraine.

The U.S. and its European allies are considering additional sanctions against Moscow for its actions in Ukraine, where President Petro Poroshenko has said Russian-backed separatists continue to violate a cease-fire agreement. 

The U.N. Human Rights Office said Monday more than 6,000 people have been killed in eastern Ukraine since April 2014, “in spite of successive cease-fires.”

After Monday’s meeting, Lavrov spoke at the U.N. Human Rights Council forum in Geneva, saying “tangible progress” has been achieved concerning the cease-fire, and he urged Kyiv to distance itself from what he called “extremists.”

Kerry will also address the Council.

Kerry has called for a thorough investigation into Nemtsov’s death. The Kremlin said Russian President Vladimir Putin is overseeing the investigation, but critics say the president might not be the best person for that job as Nemtsov told the Russian media a few weeks ago that he thought Putin wanted him dead.

Later Monday, Kerry begins three days of talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in an attempt to work out the details of a nuclear agreement with Iran. 
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