On Wednesday, Pakistan summoned the charge d’affaires of the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. This diplomatic action followed a strong protest lodged by New Delhi regarding a collision between a Pakistani warship and an Indian frontline warship in the Arabian Sea. The incident has escalated tensions between the two nations, both of which maintain a significant military presence in the region.
Islamabad claimed the incident took place in Pakistan’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The Pakistani charge d’affaires 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. The Indian charge d’affaires in Islamabad was instructed to lodge a similar protest with Pakistan’s foreign ministry.
In a statement on Wednesday, Pakistan said its navy was undertaking its biennial exercise SEASPARK-26, claiming that an Indian vessel had “carried out aggressive maneuvers in dangerously close proximity” of one of its naval ships. “The incident constituted a serious violation of international law and the bilateral agreement on Advance Notice on Military Exercises, Manoeuvres and Troop Movements, 1991, and risked escalating tensions in the region,” Pakistan’s ministry of foreign affairs said. Following the incident, India’s ministry of external affairs said the incident, which took place in international waters, did not cause “any major damage”, but added that 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”.
