In this photo dated Oct 3, 2022, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani speaks during a press conference in Tehran, Iran. (PHOTO / AFP)

TEHRAN - Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani on Monday stressed that the country's cooperation with Russia in different sectors "does not mean confrontation with Ukraine."

He made the remarks at a weekly press conference in the capital Tehran while responding to recent remarks by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who said that "a reasonable sanctions policy and political signals to the leadership of Iran are required from the international community" to prevent any potential missile supply to Russia.

Kanaani said Iran and Russia have cooperation in military, political and trade areas, which is of the two countries' common interests and is not to the detriment of any side

Kanaani said Iran wishes to maintain friendly relations with both Ukraine and Russia, noting that "we have explicitly said that we are against war, killing and displacing people and the destruction of infrastructure, and call for an end to the (Russia-Ukraine) conflict."

"We have reiterated this position and informed Ukrainian officials of it," he said. "We should not let media hypes influence Ukrainian officials' positions and impact the two countries' relations any further."

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Kanaani said Iran and Russia have cooperation in military, political and trade areas, which is of the two countries' common interests and is not to the detriment of any side.

Ukraine, as well as some Western countries, have accused Iran of exporting suicide drones to Russia for use in the ongoing conflict with Ukraine. Iran has repeatedly rejected the accusations as "baseless," saying it had only given "a limited number" of drones to Russia months before the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.