Jaishankar calls Rubio over US strikes killing Indian sailors near Oman

EAM Jaishankar calls Marco Rubio on sailor deaths, US stands by attacks

After having twice summoned the American envoy over US military strikes on foreign-flagged ships carrying Indian mariners, India further escalated the issue as external affairs minister S Jaishankar reiterated India’s protest in a phone call with his US counterpart Marco Rubio. “Such lethal actions against commercial shipping are not justified,” Jaishankar later posted on X.

9 hours ago

EAM Jaishankar Raises Killing Of 3 Indian Mariners With Marco Rubio; US Says Violations Of Iran Blockade Won't Be Tolerated

New Delhi, Jun 13: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday raised with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio the killing of three Indian mariners in a US military strike in the Gulf of Oman even as Washington firmly asserted that violations of its regional naval blockade will not be tolerated.Following his phone conversation with Rubio, the external affairs minister described the "lethal" actions by the US military against commercial shipping as unjustified.Hours later, the US State department said Rubio stressed that all commercial vessels must comply with orders from US forces to uphold peace and security in the Strait of Hormuz.Rubio underscored that violations of the US blockade and the illicit transport of Iranian oil will not be tolerated, principal deputy spokesperson of the State Department Tommy Pigott said on the phone call.Spoke to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio this evening. I reiterated India’s strong protest at the attacks by the US Navy in the Gulf that killed three Indian mariners. Such lethal actions against commercial shipping are not justified.— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) June 12, 2026The US military has been enforcing a blockade of Iran's ports in response to Tehran effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz, a critical transit route accounting for nearly 20 per cent of global oil and gas traffic.In a social media post, Jaishankar earlier said: "Spoke to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio this evening. I reiterated India's strong protest at the attacks by the US Navy in the Gulf that killed three Indian mariners.""Such lethal actions against commercial shipping are not justified," he said.India on Friday summoned US Charge d'Affaires Jason Meeks and told him that the American military's lethal strikes on three commercial vessels with Indian crew members off the coast of Oman are unacceptable.The senior diplomat was summoned on Wednesday night as well.A Palau-flagged oil tanker, Marivex, carrying 24 Indian seafarers, was disabled by US forces on June 8. All crew members were safely rescued.On June 10, the US struck another Palau-flagged tanker, Settebello, killing three out of the 24 Indian sailors on board.Another vessel, Jalveer, a Guinea-Bissau-flagged tanker with 20 Indians, was attacked on Thursday.The US Central Command said it initiated action to disable the three vessels '“ Marivex on June 8, Settebello on June 9 and Jalveer on June 11 saying they were trying to violate the US blockade of Iranian ports.In a statement, Pigott said Rubio and Jaishankar "discussed recent events in the Strait of Hormuz"."The Secretary stressed that all commercial vessels should immediately comply with orders from US forces as they seek to uphold peace and security in the Strait," he said."He underscored that violations of the U.S. blockade and the illicit transport of Iranian oil will not be tolerated," Pigott added.Following the attack on Jalveer, India said three merchant ships with Indian crew members came under attack from American military off the coast of Oman this week resulting in the death of three nationals.It was New Delhi's first public acknowledgement that US Navy targeted the three ships with Indian crew members.After Meeks was summoned on Friday, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said a "strong protest" was lodged with him regarding the continuing attacks by US naval forces on commercial vessels carrying Indian mariners in the Gulf of Oman.EAM S Jaishankar Lodges Strong Protests To Marco Rubio Over US Navy Strikes That Killed 3 Indian Mariners In Gulf Of Oman | VideoThe ministry said it once again "conveyed its deep concern over the use of lethal and deadly force against civilian shipping."MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Thursday that the three separate strikes on the Settebello, Marivex and Jalveer "came from the US Navy".Jaiswal said two of the three vessels were subject to sanctions administered by the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), while another had been classified as non-compliant.The OFAC is the financial intelligence and enforcement agency of the US Treasury Department and it acts against vessels involved in violating US sanctions on the sale of Iranian and Russian oil.(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and auto-generated from an agency feed.)

13 hours ago

EAM S Jaishankar Lodges Strong Protests To Marco Rubio Over US Navy Strikes That Killed 3 Indian Mariners In Gulf Of Oman | Video

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday raised with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio the killing of three Indian mariners in a US military strike on a merchant vessel in the Gulf of Oman. Jaishankar, currently on a visit to Europe, spoke to the US Secretary of State on the phone.Diplomatic outreach over strike"Spoke to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio this evening. I reiterated India's strong protest at the attacks by the US Navy in the Gulf that killed three Indian mariners," the external affairs minister said on social media.Spoke to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio this evening. I reiterated India’s strong protest at the attacks by the US Navy in the Gulf that killed three Indian mariners. Such lethal actions against commercial shipping are not justified.— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) June 12, 2026 "Such lethal actions against commercial shipping are not justified," he said.India's formal protestIndia on Friday summoned Charge d'Affaires Jason Meeks and told him that the American military's lethal strikes on commercial vessels with Indian crew members off the coast of Oman are unacceptable.India Summons US Chargé d’Affaires For 2nd Time In Days Over Attacks Involving Indian Seafarers Vessels targeted off OmanA Palau-flagged oil tanker, Marivex, carrying 24 Indian seafarers, was disabled by US forces on June 8. All crew members were safely rescued.On June 10, the US struck another Palau-flagged tanker, Settebello, killing three out of the 24 Indian sailors on board.https://t.co/6VEqoDxDSb— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) June 11, 2026 Another vessel, Jalveer, a Guinea-Bissau-flagged tanker with 20 Indians, was attacked on Thursday.(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)

1 day ago

India raises US vessel attacks with Rubio after sailors killed

India raises US vessel attacks with Rubio after sailors killed Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said he spoke by telephone with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio about "unjustified" attacks on vessels carrying Indian crew members off the coast of Oman, including one incident that killed three Indian sailors.   The call came after the US  embassy's chief of mission in India was summoned for the second time in two days to protest the attacks. New Delhi has expressed growing concern over the safety of Indian seafarers and maritime interests in the region following a series of strikes on commercial vessels operating near the Gulf of Oman.

1 day ago