Kathmandu. Iran has accused Ukraine of attacking one of its merchant ships in the Caspian Sea and threatened to respond to the incident. Iran said one sailor was killed and another wounded in Saturday’s attack.

Iran has made this accusation at a time when the international influence of the Russia-Ukraine war is expanding. Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a long-range strike targeted a ship carrying military equipment linked to Iran in the Caspian Sea.

Iran’s foreign ministry said one sailor was killed and another injured when the plane exploded in the early hours of Saturday.

Iran has denied interference in the Russia-Ukraine war and has condemned the attack on its merchant ship.

President Zelenskyy said on social media on Saturday that the Ukrainian armed forces had achieved “very strong results” with long-range strikes in the Caspian Sea. According to him, the attack targeted a ship used to transport military equipment related to Iran as well as a warship.

Ukraine’s SBU said in a telegram message that the drone attack targeted cargo ships used to transport military supplies between Iran and Russia and are under international sanctions.

On Saturday, Iran’s foreign ministry summoned Ukraine’s acting ambassador to Tehran to protest what it called a “hostile and criminal act”, state television reported.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called for a “strong response” from the EU and the UN Security Council in response to the attack.