Washington expressed deep concern about the escalation of violence along the lines of contact that has resulted in significant casualties since July 31st, State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki told the briefing on Monday.

“We certainly extend our condolences to the families of those killed or injured and call on the sides to take – call on all sides to take immediate action to reduce tensions and respect the cease-fire. There can be no military solution to this conflict. Retaliation and further violence will only make it more difficult to bring about a peaceful settlement. We remain committed, as a co-chair of the Minsk Group, to helping all sides reach a lasting settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,”  Psaki said.

Asked whether U.S. support the Russia-negotiated meeting of presidents planned in Sochi, Psaki said she had not talked to her team about that specifically.

“I’m – we’ve traditionally been supportive of meetings to have a dialogue about these issues,” she emphasized.

“Russia has also expressed its concerns about the recent violence. I’m not aware that that was formally planned, or it certainly wasn’t announced. I can check and see if there was a meeting that was planned or down the road in planning. It may have just been a rumor out there,” she said about the meeting.