Indian and Pakistani naval vessels collide in Arabian Sea, New Delhi summons Pakistan envoy

New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs summoned the charge d’affaires of Pakistan’s high commission in New Delhi on Wednesday to lodge a strong protest following a collision at sea between naval vessels of the two countries a day earlier. According to reports, the incident occurred on Tuesday evening, when a Pakistan Navy ship closed in on an Indian Navy warship that was on a routine surveillance mission in the North Arabian Sea.

The Pakistani vessel is reported to have approached at high speed and manoeuvred in what officials described as an unprofessional and unsafe manner, resulting in a collision between the two ships. No damage has been reported on either side.

The MEA, in a statement, said that it lodged a “strong protest” over the “unacceptable and unprofessional conduct of Pakistani naval units at sea that led to a collision with a unit of the Indian Navy.”

It added that the incident took place in international waters and did not cause any major damage.

However, it characterized the conduct of the Pakistani vessel as a direct violation of Article 10 of the April 1991 India-Pakistan Agreement on Advance Notice on Military Exercises, Manoeuvres and Troops Movements – a confidence-building measure the two nations have relied on for over three decades to reduce the risk of unintended military escalation.

During the meeting, the Pakistani envoy was “advised” to inform Islamabad of the need for all military units to exercise due care and abide by the relevant bilateral agreements in order to prevent any recurrence of such incidents, the MEA statement added.

In a parallel move, India’s charge d’affaires in Islamabad has been instructed to lodge an identical protest with Pakistan’s foreign ministry. The incident comes against the backdrop of heightened naval activity in the Arabian Sea and Gulf region this year, with both India and Pakistan having ramped up maritime deployments to safeguard shipping lanes amid regional tensions linked to the ongoing situation around the Strait of Hormuz.

The Indian Navy has not issued a separate public statement on the incident.

Back in 2011, INS Godavari was contacting the hijacked vessel MV Suez during an anti-piracy patrol, when PNS Babur approached at high speed from astern and, in violation of navigational safety regulations, brushed against it, causing minor damage to the helicopter deck’s safety net. India subsequently lodged a formal protest over the incident with the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi.