Foreign Ministry urges preservation of peace and stability in strategic waterway
ASHGABAT: Turkmenistan on Monday condemned a reported military attack on an Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea, describing such actions as unacceptable and reaffirming its commitment to regional peace and stability.
In a statement issued by its Foreign Ministry, Turkmenistan referred to international media reports published on July 25 concerning an attack on a vessel operating in the Caspian Sea.
Responding to those reports, the ministry said any military action against commercial shipping in the waterway was unacceptable. It reiterated that Turkmenistan, as a Caspian littoral state with permanent neutrality recognised by the United Nations, considers the Caspian Sea a region of peace, cooperation and good neighbourly relations.
The ministry stressed the importance of maintaining stability in the strategically significant body of water and called for adherence to principles that safeguard regional security.
Iran blames Ukraine for incident
The statement follows allegations by Iran that Ukraine attacked one of its commercial vessels in the Caspian Sea. Tehran condemned the reported incident as an act of aggression and called on the UN Security Council, the European Union and the wider international community to hold those responsible accountable.
Iran also summoned Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires to protest the alleged attack, with Iranian officials warning that the incident would not go unanswered.
Ukraine has not publicly confirmed Iran’s specific allegation regarding the commercial vessel.
Kyiv cites long-range operations
Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a post on X that Ukrainian forces had achieved “very strong results” through long-range strikes in the Caspian Sea.
He said the operations targeted vessels allegedly involved in transporting military cargo connected to Iran, as well as a warship. However, Zelenskyy did not identify the vessel mentioned by Iranian authorities or directly address Tehran’s accusation.
At the time of publication, the reported attack had not been independently verified, and no additional evidence had been released publicly by either side.
The developments come amid continued regional tensions, with diplomatic attention increasingly focused on maritime security and the protection of commercial navigation in strategically important waterways.
