Indian, Pakistani warships collide in North Arabian Sea, Delhi summons Islamabad envoy

India has also directed its Charge d’Affaires in Islamabad to lodge a similar protest with Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A frontline warship of the Indian Navy and a Pakistan Navy vessel were involved in a collision Tuesday evening in international waters in the North Arabian Sea, prompting Delhi to lodge a strong protest with Islamabad Wednesday over the “unprofessional conduct of Pakistani naval units”.

The incident was said to have taken place about 120 nautical miles from the Gulf of Oman. For several months now, Indian Navy destroyers and frigates have been deployed on missions in the North Arabian Sea.

Official sources identified the Pakistani vessel as PNS Hunain and said it was damaged in the collision, and had headed to its home port. No damage to the Indian warship was reported and it continued on its routine surveillance mission, the sources said.

Providing details of the incident, sources said PNS Hunain – it is an offshore patrol vessel, often listed as a Yarmook-class corvette because of its combat suite, and patrols coastal waters – closed in on a frontline Indian Navy warship at high speed, “manoeuvring in an unprofessional and unsafe manner, causing a minor collision”.

Collision reported here (approx.)

Map is a highly simplified schematic for orientation only — coastlines are not survey-accurate, and the pin marks an approximate area, since neither government disclosed exact coordinates.

“The Pakistani ship was approaching at high speed but was unable to manoeuvre safely and in time, causing a slight collision with the Indian warship,” the sources said.

On Wednesday, India summoned Pakistan’s Charge d’Affaires over the incident.

A statement from the Ministry of External Affairs said, “The Charge d’Affaires of the High Commission for the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in New Delhi was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs today and a strong protest was lodged with him over the unacceptable and unprofessional conduct of Pakistani naval units at sea that led to a collision with a unit of the Indian Navy.”

“While the incident, which took place in international waters, did not cause any major damage, the conduct of the Pakistani naval ship was in direct contravention of Article 10 of the Agreement between India and Pakistan on Advance Notice on Military Exercises, Manoeuvres and Troops Movements of April 1991,” it stated.

Article 10 of the agreement states: “The Naval ships and submarines belonging to the other country are not to close less than three Nautical Miles (NMs) from each other so as to avoid any accident while operating in international waters.”

The MEA statement said, “The Charge d’Affaires of Pakistan was advised to convey to the concerned Pakistani authorities the need for all military units to observe due care and respect the provisions of the relevant agreements between the two sides in order to prevent any repeat of such incidents,” it stated.

“The Charge d’Affaires of India in Islamabad has also been instructed to lodge a similar protest with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan,” it stated.

Officials in New Delhi viewed the collision as a serious departure from established safety protocols and prescribed distances, rather than a deliberate act of aggression, while underlining that any recurrence would be a matter of concern.

The incident reminded many of the last such incident between Indian and Pakistani naval ships at sea – on June 16, 2011, the Pakistani naval warship PNS Babur brushed past the Indian Navy frigate INS Godavari in the Gulf of Aden, causing minor damage to the Indian warship’s helicopter safety net.

At that time, India had said the approach was dangerously close and violated navigational regulations, subsequently lodging a formal protest by summoning the Pakistan High Commission’s naval advisor. The then Defence Minister, A K Antony, had made a statement in Parliament on the violation.