Iran has strongly condemned what it described as a Ukrainian attack on an Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea, summoning Kyiv's top diplomat in Tehran after the incident reportedly killed one sailor and wounded another.
Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused Ukraine of carrying out a "hostile and criminal" attack, saying the strike targeted a civilian vessel operating in the Caspian Sea.
The ministry summoned Ukraine's chargé d'affaires to formally protest the incident and demanded an explanation from Kyiv.
The condemnation came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine had carried out successful long-range strikes in the Caspian Sea.
In a post on X, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces had hit vessels involved in transporting military cargo linked to Iran, as well as a Russian warship.
Tehran rejected the justification, maintaining that the targeted vessel was a commercial ship.
The incident marks a further escalation in tensions between Iran and Ukraine, which have traded accusations since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Ukraine has repeatedly accused Iran of supplying Russia with thousands of Shahed drones used in attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Zelenskyy also claimed that Russia has been assisting Iran's military operations in the Middle East by providing satellite imagery of Gulf states and US military installations.
Ukraine has meanwhile expressed support for countries targeted by Iran following the recent US-Israel conflict with Tehran and has deployed military personnel to Gulf states to help counter Shahed drone attacks.
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