The Turkish-owned cargo ship Golden Leo on fire after being hit by a Russian missile strike near Odesa, Ukraine, on July 19, 2026. Photo: AFP.
One crewman was killed aboard the Iranian commercial vessel, with several others injured
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on 28 July that the Ukrainian strike on an Iranian vessel in the Caspian Sea should be treated as an attack on Iran itself, and that the threat from Kiev must be eliminated.
Peskov accused Ukraine of extending the geographic reach of what he called its “terrorist attacks,” adding that “This threat must be neutralized and definitively destroyed.”
Peskov also held Kiev responsible for the explosions that damaged Germany’s Nord Stream pipelines, which Ukraine denies, and for harming Kazakhstan’s interests by striking infrastructure tied to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) oil pipeline.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei warned Ukraine of “unforeseen consequences” over the strike, which killed one sailor and injured others.
He said the attack was “an absolutely illegal and unjustified act,” contrary to the UN Charter and “a dangerous act of adventurism” that would not go unanswered.
IRIB reported that Iranian Assistant Foreign Minister Manouchehr Moradi summoned Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires on 26 July, one day after the strike. Moradi described the attack as “criminal” and conveyed Tehran’s “strong protest” over the incident, stressing that the Islamic Republic would defend its national and security interests.
Tehran identified the targeted ship as a commercial vessel and said the strike caused an explosion on board.
Ukraine’s Attack on Iranian Commercial Vessel Aims To Drag Europe Into War: Iran FM
The exchange followed an announcement by Ukraine’s security service (SBU) on 25 July that Ukrainian forces had hit an Iranian ship ferrying military cargo between Iran and Russia across the Caspian Sea, and that the vessel had been operating in evasion of international sanctions.
Zelensky reported early morning long-range strikes on an unspecified number of ships, one of them carrying military cargo in cooperation with Iran.
The Caspian Sea has emerged as a critical trade corridor between Iran and Russia, insulated from US pressure by geography and by treaty.
As the US and Israel tighten pressure on Iran from the south, analysts argue that Tehran’s strategic depth has been shifting northward to the Caspian, which links Iran and Russia directly without passing through any state answerable to US pressure.
Overland routes run through governments either aligned with Washington or unwilling to absorb the cost of secondary sanctions. The Caspian has no such gatekeeper, allowing Iran and Russia to trade directly without external influence, and links Russia to West Asia, India, and markets beyond.
