External affairs minister says Iran’s naval vessel was allowed to dock in Kochi on humanitarian grounds.
S. Jaishankar on Saturday explained India’s decision to allow an Iranian naval vessel to dock in Kochi after the United States sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean earlier this month.
Speaking at the Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi, the external affairs minister said India’s approach was guided by international law and humanitarian considerations.
Jaishankar said the Iranian ship IRIS Lavan had sought permission to dock after reporting technical issues. India approved the request on March 1 and the vessel later docked in Kochi.
“We received a message from the Iranian side that the ship was facing problems and wanted to come to our port. There were many young cadets onboard and the situation had changed dramatically since they had set out,” Jaishankar said.
#WATCH | Raisina Dialogue 2026 | EAM Dr S Jaishankar says, “I too support UNCLOS and international law… We got a message from the Iranian side that one of the ships, which presumably was closest to our borders at that point of time, wanted to come into our port. They were… pic.twitter.com/CujBWJkXIL
— ANI (@ANI) March 7, 2026
Iranian warship sunk near Sri Lanka
The comments come days after the Iranian frigate IRIS Dena was sunk by a torpedo fired from a US submarine in international waters about 40 nautical miles off the coast of Galle in Sri Lanka on March 4.
According to reports, dozens of sailors were killed in the attack while several others were rescued by Sri Lankan authorities.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed the strike, saying an American submarine had torpedoed the Iranian warship.
India cites ‘reality of the Indian Ocean’
Jaishankar also pointed to the presence of foreign military bases across the Indian Ocean region, calling it a longstanding geopolitical reality.
He referred to facilities such as the US-UK military base on Diego Garcia and other foreign bases in places like Djibouti and Hambantota.
“Please understand the reality of the Indian Ocean,” he said, noting that foreign military presence in the region has existed for decades.
Iranian ships had taken part in Indian naval exercise
The Iranian vessels IRIS Dena, IRIS Lavan and IRIS Bushehr had earlier participated in the International Fleet Review and the MILAN 2026 naval exercise hosted by the Indian Navy in Visakhapatnam in February.
While IRIS Lavan remains docked in Kochi for technical checks, another Iranian vessel, IRIS Bushehr, was allowed to dock in Sri Lanka after reporting engine trouble.
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