Subscribe Now! Get features like
The US will not tolerate any violations of its blockade of Iranian ports and merchant shipping should comply with orders from American forces, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said when external affairs minister S Jaishankar dialled him to protest against the death of three Indian seafarers in US attacks on ships that were “not justified”.
Jaishankar and Rubio spoke late on Friday, hours after the external affairs ministry summoned US chargé d’affaires Jason Meeks for the second time in three days to protest against US attacks on merchant vessels with Indian crew members. A US strike on the Palau-flagged MT Settebello on June 9 killed three Indian seafarers.
A terse readout on the conversation from the US state department on Saturday made no mention of the deaths of the Indian seafarers – leave alone an expression of regret – and contained no acknowledgement of New Delhi’s concerns.
Also Read | Modi, Trump set for first meeting since February amid trade, Iran war concerns
After speaking to Rubio, Jaishankar said in a brief social media post early on Saturday morning that he had “reiterated India’s strong protest at the attacks by the US Navy in the Gulf that killed three Indian mariners”.
Reiterating New Delhi’s stance that merchant vessels should not be targeted and there should be unimpeded freedom of navigation and commerce, he added, “Such lethal actions against commercial shipping are not justified.”
The readout issued by US state department spokesperson Tommy Pigott noted that the two leaders discussed “recent events in the Strait of Hormuz” and said Rubio “stressed that all commercial vessels should immediately comply with orders from US forces as they seek to uphold peace and security in the Strait”.
Rubio also “underscored that violations of the US blockade and the illicit transport of Iranian oil will not be tolerated”.
Also Read | US ignores India’s concerns; Rubio says blockade violations won’t be tolerated
The exchange pointed to lingering strains in India-US relations, which were taken to their lowest point in more than two decades last year by President Donald Trump’s decision to levy 50% tariffs on Indian exports, including a 25% penalty over Russian oil purchases. The tensions eased somewhat after the two sides reached an understanding in February on the framework for a bilateral trade deal, including the slashing of Trump’s tariffs.
The US response attracted criticism in political and diplomatic circles, with Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, a former deputy foreign minister, expressing shock at the US readout, which he said “contains absolutely no expression of regret or condolence for the loss of innocent Indian lives”.
“How can a ‘friend’ and strategic partner be so deeply insensitive? Why couldn’t a non-compliant commercial vessel have been stopped using other, non-lethal means?” Tharoor said on social media. “Practically every merchant ship navigating these crucial waters has Indian crew on board. Are they all considered fair game for US missiles now?”
Former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal, in a social media post, said the “very harsh response” from Rubio was “implicitly justifying the killing of Indian mariners”. He contended that the US is “not upholding peace and security in the Strait” and is the “cause of disturbing peace and security there by its initial attacks on Iran”.
There was not “even a pro forma regret at the killing of civilian unarmed nationals of a friendly country” and Rubio had “snubbed us”, Sibal said.
US forces have targeted three foreign-flagged merchant vessels with Indian crew members off the coast of Oman this week, resulting in the death of three Indian sailors and triggering public anger in the country. Oman’s armed forces rescued 65 Indian crew members from these three vessels.
On Friday, the external affairs ministry summoned Meeks – who is officiating as chargé d’affaires as US ambassador Sergio Gor is out of the country – for the second time since Wednesday and additional secretary (Americas) Nagaraj Naidu registered a strong protest over the continued US attacks on merchant vessels with Indian crew members.
“A strong protest was lodged with [Meeks] regarding the continuing attacks by US naval forces on commercial vessels carrying Indian mariners in the Gulf of Oman, which have already resulted in the tragic and avoidable loss of three Indian lives,” the ministry said in a statement.
The Indian side again conveyed its deep concern over the “use of lethal and deadly force” against civilian shipping. “Such actions are unacceptable and undermine the safety, security and stability of international maritime commerce in a sensitive region at a difficult time,” the statement said.
Meeks was asked to convey “India’s strong concerns to his authorities and to ensure that US forces operating in the region take all necessary measures to prevent the loss of civilian life”.
Meeks was summoned to the ministry for the second time after US forces targeted MT Jalveer, a tanker with 20 Indian crew members, off Shinas port in Oman on Thursday.
The US Central Command has said it took action to “disable” three vessels this week – MT Marivex on June 8, MT Settebello on June 9 and MT Jalveer on June 11 – because they were trying to violate the US blockade of Iranian ports. A US combat aircraft fired two Hellfire missiles into Jalveer’s engine room to disable it.
None of three vessels were Indian-flagged – Marivex and Settebello were Palau-flagged while Jalveer was Guinea-Bissau-flagged – but all Indian crew members.
Three Indian crew members of Settebello who were reported missing were confirmed dead on Thursday, hours after US forces struck Jalveer. Among the dead was Aditya Sharma, a 23-year-old resident of Himachal Pradesh who was a deck cadet or apprentice training to become a licenced ship officer.
Rezaul H Laskar is the Foreign Affairs Editor at Hindustan Times. His interests include movies and music.
Leave a Reply