Warships of Two Asian Nuclear Powers Collide, Tensions Escalate
Relations between India and Pakistan have heated up again after the warships of both nations collided in international waters. Each country summoned senior diplomats from the other side to convey strong protests regarding the incident in the Arabian Sea on Wednesday (16/09/2026).
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs stated that it had summoned senior Pakistani officials to express official objections to what it described as “unacceptable and unprofessional actions” by a Pakistani naval unit that led to the collision with an Indian warship.
Pakistan took similar action. The Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that it had summoned the ad interim chargé d’affaires of the Indian High Commission in Islamabad to convey its disagreement with the “highly provocative and unacceptable actions” carried out by the Indian Navy ship.
This incident marks the first instance of open military tension between the two nuclear-armed nations since both were involved in a fierce four-day military conflict last year. That battle raised fears of a wider war before finally being ended through a ceasefire.
On Tuesday, both India and Pakistan blamed the other party for the collision.
Indian sources stated that the incident occurred when a Pakistani warship approached an Indian warship that was conducting a routine surveillance mission in the northern Arabian Sea. The Pakistani vessel was reportedly travelling at high speed as it approached the Indian ship, which was at the forefront.
The collision did not cause significant damage. However, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs assessed that Pakistan’s actions were “directly contrary” to the 1991 bilateral agreement regarding military exercises, manoeuvres, and troop movements.
The agreement stipulates that warships and submarines from both countries must maintain a distance of at least three nautical miles from each other to prevent accidents in international waters.
“The Pakistani chargé d’affaires was requested to convey to the authorities in Pakistan the need for all military units to exercise caution and respect the provisions of the relevant agreements between the two parties to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents,” the Indian Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement, as reported by Reuters.
India also instructed its senior diplomats in Islamabad to convey a similar protest to the Pakistani Ministry of External Affairs.
However, Pakistan holds a different version of events. The Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused the Indian ship of performing “aggressive manoeuvres at very close and dangerous range” against a Pakistani warship that was participating in biennial military exercises.
The Pakistani chargé d’affaires in New Delhi was requested to convey to the Indian government that Islamabad rejects the actions of the Indian Navy ship.
“The chargé d’affaires of the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi will convey the same demarche to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs,” the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated.
India and Pakistan currently do not have ambassadors in each other’s capitals. Diplomatic relations between the two nations have been downgraded since the dispute over Kashmir in 2019, resulting in both diplomatic missions being led by ad interim chargés d’affaires.
Both nations have been involved in three major wars since the end of British colonial rule in India in 1947. Two of these were related to Kashmir, a territory divided between India and Pakistan but claimed in its entirety by both countries.