Palestinian policemen stand guard next to pictures of senior Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani during a mourning ceremony held in Gaza City, Jan. 4, 2020. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

TEHRAN, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Saturday that the United States is responsible for the consequences of the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, former commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC).

Zarif made the remarks in a meeting with the visiting Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.

Iran does not seek tensions in the region, but the presence of foreign forces is the cause of instability, insecurity and tensions in our sensitive region, Zarif said, according to official IRNA news agency.

During the meeting, both sides discussed bilateral, regional and international issues, including those related to assassination of the Iranian commander.

Al Thani expressed his concerns about the regional condition after U.S. recent developments and urged the sides for de-escalating tensions.

The visit by Qatari official comes a day after the United States army assassinated the Iranian senior general in Baghdad.

Qatari Foreign Ministry has urged both Iran and the United States to exercise self-restraint amid the escalating tensions and to prevent from "taking Iraq and the region into endless violence."