Iran’s FM claims Ukraine struck Iranian vessel ‘at Israel’s behest,’ vows retaliation

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi vowed retaliation against Ukraine for a deadly attack on an Iranian vessel in the Caspian Sea, claiming it was done at Israel's behest. Ukraine's President Zelensky confirmed striking vessels used for Iranian military cargo shipments to Russia. Iran denied intervening in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and summoned Ukraine's chargé d'affaires.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday vowed retaliation against Ukraine for a deadly attack on an Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea, claiming the strike was carried out "at Israel's behest." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed on Saturday that Kyiv struck "vessels used in military cargo shipments involving Iran" in the Caspian Sea. Channel 12 reported that the Ukrainian ambassador to Israel said the vessels were transporting Iranian weapons to Russia. Iran's foreign ministry described the attack as "hostile and criminal," causing an explosion that killed one sailor and injured several others. Iran denied intervening in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and summoned Ukraine's chargé d'affaires. Araghchi, in a post on X, called Zelensky a "freeloader" and said the attack was "a blatant UN Charter violation done at Israel's behest." He added in calls with EU and Russian counterparts that the action "CANNOT GO UNANSWERED." Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov offered condolences to Iran. Separately, a senior Iranian source told Reuters that Iran would halt regional attacks if the US also withheld fire. The US and Israel had launched a joint bombing campaign on Iran in February 2026, with Iran responding with missile and drone strikes.