Pakistan Warship Grazes Indian Navy Ship
Incident occurred in international waters near Oman; India summons Pakistan’s top diplomat over the maritime encounter
- A Pakistani Navy vessel reportedly came into close contact with an Indian Navy ship about 220 km east of Oman.
- Sources described the Pakistani vessel’s manoeuvring as aggressive, intimidatory and unprofessional.
- India summoned Pakistan’s Charge d’Affaires and lodged a strong protest over the incident.
- The incident comes 15 years after a similar encounter involving Pakistani Navy’s Babur and INS Godavari.
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 17th Sept: A Pakistani Navy warship reportedly grazed an Indian Navy vessel in the North Arabian Sea on September 15, with the incident taking place around 220 km east of Oman in international waters, according to Indian sources.
The Pakistani vessel was identified as PNS Hunain, a Yarmook-class corvette. Sources said the ship approached the Indian Navy vessel at high speed and did not slow down or maintain adequate distance while crossing it. The Indian Navy vessel was reportedly on a routine surveillance mission.
According to the sources cited in reports, the incident occurred amid rough sea conditions. Both vessels subsequently moved away from each other. The Indian Navy ship and its personnel were not reported to have suffered major damage or casualties.
Following the incident, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) summoned Pakistan’s Charge d’Affaires in New Delhi and lodged a strong protest over what it described as the “unacceptable and unprofessional conduct” of Pakistani naval units that led to the collision.
The MEA said the incident took place in international waters and noted that the conduct of the Pakistani naval vessel was in direct contravention of Article 10 of the 1991 India-Pakistan agreement on advance notice of military exercises, manoeuvres and troop movements. India advised Pakistan’s diplomatic representative to convey to the concerned authorities the need for military units to exercise due care and comply with relevant agreements.
The Pakistani diplomat remained at the MEA for around half an hour, according to sources.
The latest encounter has drawn comparisons with a June 2011 incident involving the Pakistani Navy ship Babur and the Indian Navy’s INS Godavari. That earlier incident also involved the two naval vessels coming into close proximity at sea.
