Iran has accused Ukraine of attacking one of its commercial vessels in the Caspian Sea, as tensions between the two countries escalated following Ukrainian strikes on Russian ships said to be transporting military cargo. Iran’s foreign ministry said on Sunday that an explosion aboard an Iranian commercial vessel killed one sailor and injured another, according to a statement carried by Iranian state media.
It described the alleged attack as a violation of the UN Charter and “an act of aggression”, adding that responsibility for the consequences would lie with Ukraine “and its supporters and instigators”.
The allegation followed comments by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday announcing that Ukrainian forces had carried out long-range strikes against Russian vessels in the Caspian Sea.
“We achieved very strong results with long-range strikes in the Caspian Sea – including vessels used in military cargo shipments involving Iran,” Zelenskyy wrote on X.
Ukraine’s Security Service said the targeted vessels were transporting military cargo between Iran and Russia, although it did not specify the direction of the shipments.
According to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and United24, the agency identified two sanctioned cargo ships – Port Olya 2 and Begey – as targets. It also said Ukrainian forces struck a Lukoil offshore oil platform and a Russian missile boat.
The claims by both sides have not been independently verified.
The Caspian Sea links Russia and Iran, which have strengthened military ties since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Iran has previously supplied Russia with military equipment, including Shahed drones, for use in the war in Ukraine.
On Friday, US President Donald Trump warned Russia and China against supplying weapons to Iran. “If they did, it would be very bad for them — certainly not in their best interests,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.
He later told reporters at the White House: “President Putin, despite the horrible war going on in Ukraine, told me that he would not sell weapons to Iran.”
“I think I trust them,” he added.
Earlier in the week, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth told a Senate hearing that Russia and China were assisting Iran, although he did not provide details. “There are ways in which both of those countries are, at different levels, enabling some of the things Iran is doing, yes,” he said.
Separately on Saturday, an Iranian Telegram channel, Middle East Spectator, published a post warning that Ukraine was within range of Iran’s ballistic missiles.
“A gentle reminder to Zelenskyy: All of Ukraine is within reach of Iran’s ballistic missiles,” the post said alongside a map showing the reported range of Iran’s Khorramshahr-4 missile. “Although it would be a waste of good missiles,” it added.
Later on Saturday, Zelenskyy alleged that Russia was providing Iran with satellite imagery to assist its military operations. “Since the beginning of July, we have recorded active Russian satellite surveillance of the Gulf states and U.S. military facilities,” he wrote on X.
“These images subsequently appear in Iran. At the same time, there is a clear correlation between Russia’s satellite imagery of these sites and Iranian strikes.”
He said the Caspian Sea strikes formed part of a wider campaign in response to a Russian missile attack near Kyiv that Ukrainian authorities said killed at least 10 people.