New Delhi, 07 March (H.S.): External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Saturday articulated India's humanitarian rationale for permitting an Iranian naval vessel, laden with young cadets, to dock in Kochi, emphasizing that the crew found itself caught on the wrong side of events as Middle East tensions erupted unpredictably.

The decision, Jaishankar explained during his first public comments on the intensifying West Asia conflict—now in its eighth consecutive day—stemmed from a distress call received on March 1, when the ship reported mechanical issues near Indian waters. We got a message from the Iranian side that one of its ships, which presumably was closest to our borders at that point of time, wanted to come into our port. They were reporting that they were having problems, he stated, underscoring the fluid geopolitical landscape.

The vessel, originally en route to a fleet review, arrived in Kochi days before a dramatic escalation: a U.S. strike from the USS Charlotte sank the Iranian ship IRIS Dena on March 4, claiming over 80 lives. When the ships had set out and when they came here, the situation was totally different, Jaishankar noted. They got, in a way, caught on the wrong side of events.

He drew parallels to a similar Iranian vessel near Sri Lanka, where local authorities' handling ended tragically for that ship.Jaishankar firmly positioned India's response as a matter of humanity over politics or legal intricacies, including adherence to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). We approached the situation from the point of view of humanity, other than whatever the legal issues were, and I think we did the right thing, he affirmed, while cautioning against social media-fueled alarmism.

There are a lot of social media debates going on over this. Please understand the reality of the Indian Ocean, he added, referencing longstanding foreign military footprints like the Diego Garcia base (operational for decades), deployments in Djibouti since the early 2000s, and infrastructure developments such as Sri Lanka's Hambantota port.

The remarks, delivered amid soaring maritime security concerns in the Indian Ocean, reflect India's delicate balancing act in a volatile region. As Iran-Israel hostilities spiral, with ripple effects on global shipping lanes, Jaishankar's words signal India's intent to prioritize human lives even as strategic pressures mount.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar