Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araqchi called Zelensky a freeloader (Picture: REUTERS)

Ukraine launched a strike on an Iranian tanker in an attack that threatens to ‘drag Europe’ into the Middle East conflict.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed strikes against sanctioned ships transporting military cargo between Iran and Russia in the Caspian Sea on Saturday.

Iran’s foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi hit back: ‘Zelensky has attacked an Iranian commercial vessel,killing a sailor.

‘A blatant UN Charter violation done at Israel’s behest to drag Europe into its war.

‘In calls with EU High Rep Kallas and FM Lavrov,made clear that what the freeloader in Kyiv did CANNOT GO UNANSWERED.’

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Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.Tehran and Kyiv are just 1,200 miles apart,well within range of ballistic missiles which both countries own,sparking fears of the wars merging effectively creating the conditions for WWIII.Zelensky also accused Russia of giving Iran satellite images of US targets to attack.‘Since the beginning of July,we have recorded active Russian satellite surveillance of the Gulf states and US military facilities located there,’ Zelensky said on X.A strike on a vessel in the Middle East‘These images subsequently appear in Iran. At the same time,there is a clear correlation between Russia’s satellite imagery of these sites and Iranian strikes — both before the attacks,in preparation for them,and afterward,to assess the damage inflicted.’Iran’s Foreign Ministry reported an explosion aboard the commercial vessel on Saturday morning that also wounded another sailor before adding Tehran has remained neutral in Russia’s invasion.Iranian deputy parliament speaker Ali Nikzad added: ‘Iran will always exercise its legal right to defend its territorial integrity.‘Any location used as a launching point for aggression against our country and territory will undoubtedly be considered a legitimate target for our armed forces,and the Ukrainian government’s reckless action will not go unanswered.’He also warned Ukraine,Britain and Bulgaria against supporting US military actions,saying any location used to launch attacks on Iran would be considered a ‘legitimate target’.Donald Trump posted another surreal AI image of him taking an Iranian tanker and planting a US flag in a flurry of posts (Picture: Truth Social)The conflict threatened to boil over even after President Donald Trump abruptly called off his two-week-old bombing campaign.After ‌13 nights of intensifying US airstrikes on Iran,the Pentagon abruptly suspended the campaign late on Friday,with no attacks reported on either Saturday or Sunday.The Iranian Health Ministry says 3,434 people have been killed since the war began,including 55 during the recent escalation. The latest strikes temporarily disrupted transportation and communications within Iran,and damaged water infrastructure used by thousands of people.Eighteen American service members are believed to have been killed since the start of the Iran war,including four US soldiers in recent days