India-Pakistan Naval Standoff 2026: How the Arabian Sea Collision Echoes the 2011 INS Godavari Incident
The mid-sea collision between Indian and Pakistani naval warships in international waters on September 15 has triggered fresh diplomatic tension between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. While such high-speed naval encounters are rare, this one is not without precedent it bears a striking resemblance to a major maritime standoff that unfolded 15 years ago.
High-Speed Encounter Off the Oman Coast
The latest incident took place on the evening of September 15 in the North Arabian Sea, roughly 220 kilometres east of Oman. A frontline Indian Navy vessel carrying out routine surveillance was approached at high speed by a Pakistan Navy warship.
The Pakistani vessel allegedly manoeuvred erratically before grazing past the Indian warship. Quick seamanship prevented any casualties or major structural damage, but New Delhi swiftly summoned Pakistan’s Charge d’Affaires, Saad Ahmad Warraich, to lodge a formal demarche, describing the manoeuvre as “unacceptable and unprofessional.”
Echoes of the 2011 INS Godavari–PNS Babur Standoff
A nearly identical confrontation played out in June 2011, involving the guided-missile frigate INS Godavari and the Pakistani frigate PNS Babur. INS Godavari was the lead ship of the Godavari-class guided-missile frigates, built by Mazagon Dock Limited in Mumbai. Commissioned on December 10, 1983, the vessel served the nation for 32 years before being decommissioned on December 23, 2015.
Its Pakistani counterpart, PNS Babur, was a Type 21 general-purpose frigate originally the Royal Navy’s HMS Amazon that served in the Pakistan Navy from 1993 to 2014.
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The 2011 incident occurred during anti-piracy operations following the release of the hijacked merchant vessel MV Suez. As both navies rushed units to escort the freed vessel, PNS Babur closed in on INS Godavari at unsafe speeds, eventually brushing against the Indian frigate’s flight deck and shearing off its helicopter safety netting.
That encounter sparked a sharp war of words, with India releasing video evidence of the risky approach, while Islamabad countered by alleging that the Indian warship had obstructed a humanitarian rescue mission.
Violation of Bilateral Safety Protocols
In both the 2011 and 2026 incidents, New Delhi pointed to specific violations of existing bilateral confidence-building measures. Specifically, India cited Article 10 of the April 1991 “Agreement Between India and Pakistan on Advance Notice on Military Exercises, Manoeuvres and Troop Movements.”
Under these protocols, naval surface ships and submarines operating in international waters are required to maintain a safe operational buffer a minimum distance of three nautical miles, or roughly 5.6 kilometres to eliminate the risk of accidental collisions.
Although catastrophic damage was avoided on both occasions, the recurrence of such incidents underscores the delicate security environment prevailing in the Arabian Sea.