STEPANAKERT. – Stepanakert expresses concern over the events that took place recently in the Middle East, particularly in Baghdad. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) (MFA) noted this in a statement it released.

"We hope that the tension will be reduced and the situation will be settled [there] exclusively through peaceful means, ensuring regional stability and security," the statement also reads. "The Artsakh MFA is following the situation and is in constant contact with the partner structures of the Republic of Armenia."

A US drone strike killed Lieutenant General Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps of Iran, at Baghdad’s international airport early on Friday. The Pentagon said in a statement that US President Donald Trump had ordered the attack.