Attack on vessel carrying Indians: Delhi summons Kyiv ambassador as Ukraine widens maritime war

India on Monday summoned Ukraine's Ambassador to New Delhi after a merchant vessel carrying four Indian nationals came under attack at the Ukrainian port of Odesa over the weekend, amid growing concerns over the safety of Indian seafarers operating in conflict zones.

The diplomatic move came two days after the MV AGN Ragnar was struck while docked at Odesa. According to the Indian Embassy in Kyiv, two of the four Indian crew members have been confirmed safe, while information on the remaining two is still awaited as search and rescue operations continue.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had on Sunday advised Indian nationals to carefully assess security risks before accepting employment on commercial vessels operating in conflict-affected waters.

The incident comes as the Russia-Ukraine war increasingly spills beyond traditional battlefronts, with Ukraine expanding long-range strikes to maritime routes that have assumed strategic importance for Russia and its allies.

Ukraine extends long-range strikes to Caspian Sea

On July 25, Ukrainian long-range drones targeted an Iranian merchant vessel in the Caspian Sea, killing one sailor and injuring another. Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Abbas Araghchi described the attack as a "hostile and criminal act", while reports indicated Tehran was weighing its response.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the operation had achieved "very strong results with long-range strikes in the Caspian Sea", including against vessels allegedly involved in military cargo shipments linked to Iran as well as a warship.

The strike followed earlier Ukrainian attacks in the Caspian region. In December last year, Ukrainian drones struck Russian oil rigs in the inland sea, marking the first known extension of the war into the Caspian. On March 27 this year, Israeli aircraft targeted Iranian naval assets and port infrastructure around Bandar Anzali on Iran's Caspian coast.

The Caspian Sea, bordered by Russia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan, has emerged as a strategically significant transport corridor. The United States has said the route is used to move commercial and military cargo between Russia and Iran, both of which face extensive Western sanctions.

According to US officials, Iran has previously transported drone components across the Caspian Sea through Russia's Volga River system to facilities producing Geran-2 drones, derivatives of Iran's Shahed-136 unmanned aerial vehicle.

Implications for India's trade corridor

The widening conflict has also raised concerns over the future of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), a 7,200-km multimodal trade route linking Mumbai with Moscow through Iran and the Caspian region.

Earlier this month, the MEA clarified that India's Shahid Beheshti terminal at Iran's Chabahar Port was not damaged after military action in the area. However, continuing hostilities at both Iran's southern coast and the Caspian region have heightened uncertainty over the corridor's operational viability.

The conflict has also cast doubt over the future of a contract signed in October 2023 under which Goa Shipyard Ltd is to build 24 river-sea cargo vessels for Russian clients operating in the Caspian Sea by 2027. The vessels — including chemical tankers, bulk carriers and container ships —were expected to support expanding India-Russia trade under the INSTC framework.

The attack on the MV AGN Ragnar is the latest incident highlighting the risks faced by commercial shipping in waters affected by the Russia-Ukraine war.

With Ukraine extending long-range operations to the Caspian Sea and maritime routes becoming increasingly contested, concerns are growing over the safety of civilian vessels and the potential impact on regional trade corridors, including those in which India has strategic interests.