New Delhi, Sep 16 (IANS): India on Wednesday lodged a strong protest with the Charge d’Affaires of the Pakistan High Commission after a Pakistani naval ship’s action at sea led to a collision with an Indian Navy unit, with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) terming the action “unprofessional and unacceptable”.
According to sources, the incident took place on the evening of September 15 when a Pakistan Naval Ship closed a frontline Indian Naval unit on a routine surveillance mission in the North Arabian Sea at high speed, manoeuvring in an “unprofessional and unsafe manner”, leading to the collision. No damage has been reported in the incident.
Pakistan’s envoy was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in New Delhi, where the incident was criticised.
In a statement, the MEA said, “The Charge d’Affaires of the High Commission for the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in New Delhi 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 the incident, which took place in international waters, did not cause any major damage, but the Pakistani naval ship’s conduct 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.
According to the Ministry, the Charge d’Affaires of Pakistan was asked to convey to the concerned Pakistani authorities that all military units should exercise due care and respect the provisions of the relevant agreements between the two nations.
“The Charge d’Affaires of Pakistan 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 MEA mentioned in a statement.
“The Charge d’Affaires of India in Islamabad has also been instructed to lodge a similar protest with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan,” it added.
