India summons Pakistan diplomat after Navy ships collide in Arabian Sea

India on Wednesday summoned Pakistan’s Charge d’Affaires (CDA) and lodged a strong protest over what it described as “unacceptable and unprofessional conduct” by a Pakistan Navy vessel that led to a collision with an Indian Navy ship in international waters in the Arabian Sea.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the Pakistani diplomat was asked to convey to the authorities concerned in Pakistan the need for all military units to exercise due care at sea and respect relevant agreements between the two countries to prevent such incidents from recurring.

“The CDA 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,” the MEA said.

According to the ministry, the incident took place in international waters and did not result in any major damage.

However, India said the conduct of the Pakistani naval vessel was in direct contravention of Article 10 of the April 1991 agreement between India and Pakistan on Advance Notice on Military Exercises, Manoeuvres and Troop Movements.

The MEA did not provide further details about the circumstances of the collision, including the identities of the vessels involved or whether any personnel were injured.

It said the Charge d’Affaires of India in Islamabad had also been instructed to lodge a similar protest with Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The incident comes amid continued tensions between India and Pakistan, although the MEA statement focused specifically on maritime conduct and the need to prevent a recurrence.

India and Pakistan have agreements covering military activities and communication mechanisms intended to reduce the risk of unintended escalation between the two countries’ armed forces.