Iran announced it will respond to the attack carried out by Ukrainian forces on an Iranian commercial ship in the Caspian Sea. One sailor was killed and multiple people were injured.
In a statement on social media, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Arakçi said that Ukraine's action violates the United Nations Charter and will not go unanswered. Arakçi accused Israel of inciting Ukraine to drag Europe into war. The minister also shared his views in phone calls with EU High Representative Kaja Kallas and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry described the Saturday attack as a 'hostile and criminal act' and summoned Ukraine's chargé d'affaires in Tehran. The ministry stressed that Iran has never been involved in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
The Ukrainian side, however, claimed that the attacks in the Caspian Sea targeted a Russian warship and ships carrying Iran-linked military cargo. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that with long-range strikes they have achieved 'very powerful results' and that they struck ships used in military cargo shipments involving Iran, as well as a warship.
Chairman of the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Ibrahim Azizi also warned Ukraine of retaliation. Azizi said, 'Every attack on Iran has a price, and that is still true today,' adding that Ukraine would soon understand that Iran will not remain passive.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov offered condolences for the sailor who lost his life. Lavrov conveyed that Arakçi thanked officials in Russia's Astrakhan region, from where the ship began its voyage, and stressed the need to 'put an end to such adventures by the Kyiv regime.'
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Kyiv has accused Tehran of supplying Moscow with thousands of Shahed drones. Following the US-Israeli war on Iran, Ukraine sent military personnel to Gulf countries in solidarity with Middle Eastern nations targeted by Tehran.
