India protests Pakistan Navy’s “unprofessional conduct” after Arabian Sea collision

The collision occurred on September 15 when a Pakistani ship approached an Indian warship at high speed during a routine surveillance mission

PGurus Newsdesk

September 16, 2026

India summoned Pakistan's Charge d'Affaires and lodged a strong protest after a Pakistani naval ship collided with an Indian warship in the Arabian Sea on September 15, calling the conduct a breach of a 1991 bilateral agreement

India Summons Pakistan Diplomat, Lodges Strong Protest Over Naval Collision In Arabian Sea

MEA calls conduct of Pakistani naval units “unacceptable and unprofessional” after a high-speed collision with an Indian warship, the first overt military friction since last year’s four-day conflict

India on Wednesday summoned the Charge d’Affaires of the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi and lodged a strong protest over what the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) called the “unacceptable and unprofessional conduct” of Pakistani naval units that led to a collision with an Indian Navy vessel in the Arabian Sea. The diplomat was advised to convey to Pakistani authorities the need for all military units to exercise due care and comply with existing bilateral agreements to prevent any repeat.

How The Collision Happened

According to Indian sources, the incident occurred on the evening of September 15, when a Pakistan Navy ship approached a frontline Indian Navy warship conducting a routine surveillance mission in the North Arabian Sea. The Pakistani vessel closed in at high speed and manoeuvred in what officials described as an unsafe and unprofessional manner, resulting in the collision. The incident took place in international waters and, per the MEA, caused no major damage to the Indian ship.

A Breach Of A Long-Standing Agreement

India’s protest went beyond conduct alone — the MEA said Pakistan’s naval manoeuvre was in direct contravention of a 1991 bilateral agreement governing military exercises, manoeuvres and troop movements between the two countries. That agreement exists precisely to prevent the kind of close, high-speed encounters that led to Tuesday’s collision.

The First Such Incident Since Last Year’s Conflict

The collision marks the first instance of overt military friction between the two nuclear-armed neighbours since they fought a fierce, four-day conflict last year that raised fears of a wider war before a ceasefire took hold. Given that backdrop, even an incident causing no major damage carries outsized diplomatic weight — which is reflected in India’s decision to summon Pakistan’s top diplomat in New Delhi rather than resolve the matter through lower-level channels.

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