Iran Threatens Revenge Against Zelensky After Strike on Its Vessel in the Caspian Sea

Iran has threatened Ukraine with retaliation after Ukrainian forces struck an Iranian merchant vessel in the Caspian Sea, killing one sailor. The claim was made by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday in a post on X.

"Zelensky attacked an Iranian merchant ship and killed a sailor. This is a blatant violation of the UN Charter, carried out at Israel's behest to drag Europe into its war," Araghchi wrote. According to him, in phone calls with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, he made it clear that what "the lackey in Kyiv" had done could not go unanswered. The minister offered no evidence to support Israel's alleged involvement and did not explain why Ukraine would act in Jerusalem's interests.

On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, listing successful strikes on distant Russian targets in a post on X, said Ukrainian forces had also achieved significant results with long-range strikes in the Caspian Sea. He said the targets included vessels involved in transporting military cargo from Iran, as well as a warship, though he did not provide further details.

Throughout the war, Ukraine has had to defend itself against Iranian-designed "Shahed" drones deployed by Russia. At the same time, Kyiv has offered its drone-interception expertise to Middle Eastern countries that have come under attack from Iran.

Tehran called the strike on its vessel an act of aggression and stated it would defend its national interests and security. Iran also accused Kyiv of trying to expand the war beyond Ukraine's borders, according to the Times of Israel.

Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned Ukraine's chargé d'affaires in Tehran to hand him a formal protest over what it described as a "hostile and criminal" attack, the Times of Israel reported, citing the state news agency IRNA.

Notably, Tehran's condemnation of the strike coincided with President Zelensky's statement that Kyiv had recorded Russia passing satellite intelligence from the Middle East to Iran to help guide strikes in the region.

According to CNBC, Ukraine's latest strikes — together with Saudi military attacks on targets linked to Iran-backed Yemeni Houthi rebels, launched following recent rebel attacks on shipping in the Red Sea — appear to signal a further widening of the conflict in the Middle East.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz