# INS Kolkata and PNS Hunain collide in Arabian Sea: Pakistan and India summon envoys Source: Searchable (https://searchable.pk/news/politics/ins-kolkata-pns-hunain-collision-pakistan-india-summon-envoys) Type: News article Author: Searchable Editorial Published: 17 Sept 2026 Updated: 17 Sept 2026 Retrieved: 17 Sept 2026 > Islamabad says an Indian destroyer made contact with a Pakistan Navy ship inside its economic zone during the SEASPARK-26 exercise. New Delhi blames the Pakistani ship. What each side says. Pakistan and India have each summoned the other's senior diplomat after a Pakistan Navy ship and an Indian warship **made contact in the North Arabian Sea on 15 September**. It is the first open military friction between the two navies since the four-day conflict of May 2025. ## What Pakistan says happened According to the Foreign Office, the Indian destroyer **INS Kolkata** carried out "aggressive manoeuvres in dangerously close proximity" to **PNS Hunain** inside Pakistan's **Exclusive Economic Zone**, while the Pakistan Navy was running its biennial **SEASPARK-26** exercise. The manoeuvres ended in contact between the two ships. Islamabad's response on 16 September: - The Foreign Office **summoned India's chargé d'affaires** in Islamabad. - Pakistan's High Commission in New Delhi lodged a **formal demarche** with India's Ministry of External Affairs. - The FO called the action "highly provocative and unacceptable" and said it breached the **1991 bilateral agreement on Advance Notice on Military Exercises, Manoeuvres and Troop Movements**. - It asked the international community to urge India to abandon what it called its "belligerent posture". ## What India says happened India's account is the reverse. Indian officials, quoted by Business Today, said PNS Hunain "manoeuvred at a high speed in an unsafe and unprofessional manner" and struck an Indian warship on routine surveillance in **international waters**. They said the Indian ship was not damaged and that PNS Hunain was badly damaged and returned to harbour. Pakistan has not commented on any damage. New Delhi **summoned Pakistan's chargé d'affaires** and lodged "a strong protest" over what it called "unacceptable and unprofessional conduct of Pakistani naval units at sea", citing Article 10 of the same 1991 agreement. ## Why the 1991 agreement matters The 1991 pact is one of the few military confidence-building measures the two countries still observe. It requires advance notice of exercises near the border and sets rules to keep forces from coming too close. Both sides now accuse each other of breaking it, which makes the collision a diplomatic issue as well as a naval one. ## Why it matters now - **Diplomatic ties are thin.** Relations have been downgraded since 2019, so both missions are led by chargés d'affaires, not high commissioners. - **The sea lanes are tense.** The Arabian Sea carries Pakistan's oil imports at a time when Saudi supply is disrupted and petrol is [Rs 391.22 a litre](/news/economy/petrol-price-2026-09-17). On 16 September Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik warned that any attack on an empty oil tanker stranded in the Red Sea would be treated as "an act of war", Geo News reported. - **Markets watch these moments.** The KSE-100 closed at 168,022 on Wednesday; track the index on our [KSE-100 page](/data/kse-100). ## What happens next Neither side had announced a joint inquiry by Thursday morning. Watch for a statement from the Pakistan Navy or ISPR on PNS Hunain's condition, an Indian Navy briefing, and whether either capital takes the dispute to third countries, as the Foreign Office's appeal to the international community suggests Pakistan will. ## Frequently asked questions **What happened between INS Kolkata and PNS Hunain?** On 15 September 2026 the two ships made contact in the North Arabian Sea. Pakistan says the Indian warship manoeuvred dangerously inside its Exclusive Economic Zone during the SEASPARK-26 exercise; India says the Pakistani ship caused the collision in international waters. ## Sources - Pakistan summons Indian Cd'A to protest INS Kolkata warship's 'provocative' manoeuvres (16 Sep 2026) (The Express Tribune): https://tribune.com.pk/story/2629695/pakistan-protests-indian-warships-provocative-manoeuvres-in-exclusive-economic-zone - 'Provocative, irresponsible': Pakistan protests Indian warship's incursion into EEZ (16 Sep 2026) (Geo News): https://www.geo.tv/latest/682368-provocative-irresponsible-pakistan-protests-indian-warships-incursion-into-eez - A high speed manoeuvre, a collision: How Pakistan Navy's PNS Hunain collided with Indian warship (16 Sep 2026) (Business Today): https://www.businesstoday.in/amp/india/story/a-high-speed-manoeuvre-a-collision-how-pakistan-navys-pns-hunain-collided-with-indian-warship-555954-2026-09-16 - Pakistan protests Indian warship's entry into its exclusive economic zone (16 Sep 2026) (ARY News): https://arynews.tv/pakistan-protests-indian-warships-entry-into-its-exclusive-economic-zone - Pakistan warns any attack on oil tanker stuck near Saudi pipeline will be 'act of war' (16 Sep 2026) (Geo News): https://www.geo.tv/latest/682356-pakistan-warns-any-attack-on-oil-tanker-stuck-near-saudi-pipeline-will-be-act-of-war How to cite: "INS Kolkata and PNS Hunain collide in Arabian Sea: Pakistan and India summon envoys", Searchable, 17 Sept 2026, https://searchable.pk/news/politics/ins-kolkata-pns-hunain-collision-pakistan-india-summon-envoys