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The United States on Wednesday urged Armenia and Azerbaijan to de-escalate in a meeting with the two countries' foreign ministers, hours after four Armenian soldiers were killed by Azerbaijani fire in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh).

On the second of three days of talks opened on Tuesday by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Armenia’s Ararat Mirzoyan and Azerbaijan’s Jeyhun Bayramov met with White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan.

“I encouraged Armenia & Azerbaijan to continue making progress toward peace, as well as to avoid provocations and de-escalate tensions in order to build confidence,” he said in a tweet afterward.

Good to host @AraratMirzoyan & @Bayramov_Jeyhun together at the White House today. I encouraged Armenia & Azerbaijan to continue making progress toward peace, as well as to avoid provocations and de-escalate tensions in order to build confidence.

— Jake Sullivan (@JakeSullivan46) June 28, 2023

State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters on Wednesday that the U.S. was “deeply disturbed by the loss of life in Nagorno-Karabakh.”

He said that the latest incidents "underscore the need to refrain from hostilities and for a durable and dignified peace."