India protests to Pakistan after naval collision in Arabian Sea
New Delhi says the incident breached a 1991 agreement governing the distance between Indian and Pakistani naval vessels in international waters.
India has summoned Pakistan’s chargé d’affaires in New Delhi after saying a Pakistani naval ship collided with an Indian warship in international waters in the Arabian Sea on 15 September.
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs said it lodged a formal protest and accused Pakistan’s navy of “unacceptable and unprofessional conduct”. India said the collision breached a 1991 bilateral agreement requiring the countries’ naval ships and submarines to remain at least three nautical miles apart.
The ministry said Pakistan’s diplomat was asked to convey the need for military units to respect existing agreements to prevent similar incidents. India also instructed its chargé d’affaires in Islamabad to lodge a protest with Pakistan’s foreign ministry.
Pakistan had not immediately commented on the incident. The account of the collision and the alleged agreement breach is based on India’s statement, with no independent details provided about damage, injuries, the vessels involved or the precise location.
The incident comes amid strained diplomatic relations. India and Pakistan have not had ambassadors in each other’s capitals since ties were downgraded in 2019. The two countries have fought three major wars since independence in 1947, two over Kashmir.
