• Says IRIS Dena was unarmed and defenceless 

Former Indian Foreign Secretary Kanwal Sibal has said the US ignored India’s sensitivities when a US submarine sank the Iranian warship IRIS Dena in the Indian Ocean, noting the vessel was present in the region following an invitation from India.

Commenting on the incident on the social media platform X yesterday (5), Sibal suggested the Indian Navy should consider issuing a message of condolence for the Iranian sailors who were killed, noting they had been India’s invited guests during the multinational exercise.

Sibal said the Iranian vessel had travelled to the region to participate in India’s Milan naval exercise, which New Delhi had hosted.

“The Iranian ship would not have been where it was if we had not invited it to take part in our Milan exercise. We were the hosts,” he wrote.

According to Sibal, vessels participating in the exercise are required to follow strict protocol, which includes not carrying ammunition, leaving the Iranian ship effectively defenceless at the time of the attack.

“I am told that as per protocol for this exercise ships cannot carry any ammunition. It was defenceless,” he said, adding that Iranian naval personnel had also paraded before India’s President during the event.

Sibal further suggested the strike appeared to have been premeditated, noting the US Navy had been aware of the Iranian ship’s presence in the exercise. He pointed out that the United States had initially been invited to take part in the Milan exercise but had withdrawn shortly before it began.

“The US has ignored India’s sensitivities as the ship was in these waters because of India’s invitation,” he said.

However, Sibal stressed that India bore no political or military responsibility for the attack, adding the country’s responsibility lay only at a moral and humanitarian level.