Iran's foreign ministry on Saturday condemned what it called a Ukrainian attack on an Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea, saying it killed one sailor and injured another. Tehran called the apparent attack an act of aggression and said it would defend its national interests and security. Ukraine's diplomatic representative to Iran was summoned, Iranian state media reported.
Zelenskyy Comments on Caspian Strikes and Iranian Cooperation
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday said on X that Ukraine had "achieved very strong results with long‑range strikes in the Caspian Sea – including vessels used in military cargo shipments involving Iran." He also accused Russia of sharing its satellite observations in the Middle East with Iran to enable it to direct strikes in the region.
North Korean Troops and Drone Attacks
Zelenskyy said Russia wants to bring in 30,000 North Korean troops to take part in its more than four-year-old conflict with Ukraine and is already preparing to receive them in the Voronezh region since June. Under a mutual defence pact, North Korea sent an estimated 14,000 soldiers to Russia's Kursk region in 2024 to help Moscow beat back a major incursion by Ukrainian forces.
Twelve people were killed, including five children, in a drone attack on a holiday camp in a Russian-held part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region, Russian-installed local authorities said on Saturday, accusing Ukraine of deliberately attacking civilians. Kyiv did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian capital Kyiv came under attack from Russian forces early on Sunday, with falling debris triggering fires in at least three districts, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said. Ukraine's air force said Russian forces had targeted the capital with ballistic missiles. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
Peace Deal Remarks by Kazakhstan President
Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said on Saturday a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine might be reached if both sides froze the conflict and resumed negotiations. Tokayev made the remarks while meeting Vladimir Putin at a Russia-Kazakhstan forum in the Siberian city of Omsk. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, quoted by the state TASS news agency, said Putin outlined to Tokayev in detail the state of Russia's military operations in Ukraine.
