The United States said on Thursday it was in direct communication with the Indian government after New Delhi summoned the most senior American diplomat in the country to protest an attack on a tanker off the coast of Oman that left three Indian crew members missing.
A State Department spokesperson, responding to a query from Hindustan Times, said: "The Department of State is in direct contact with the Government of India regarding this matter."
The statement came after India on Wednesday condemned the attack on the Palau-flagged tanker Settebello, which was targeted by US forces for allegedly attempting to evade an American blockade of Iranian ports.
US chargé d'affaires Jason Meeks was summoned by additional secretary (Americas) Nagaraj Naidu at the external affairs ministry, where India lodged a strong protest and made clear that attacks endangering the lives of Indian seafarers were unacceptable.
Of the 28 crew on board — including 24 Indians, two Pakistanis, one Russian and one Ukrainian — 21 Indian crew members were rescued by Omani armed forces. Three Indians remain missing.
The vessel was travelling from Lianyungang port in China to Fujairah in the UAE when the UK Maritime Trade Operations reported an engine room fire approximately 20 nautical miles northeast of the Omani port of Sohar.
British maritime risk management group Vanguard said the ship had transmitted a distress call reporting a missile strike that caused the fire.
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The Settebello attack followed a US strike two days earlier on the tanker MT Marivex, which had an all-Indian crew, HT reported.
India's external affairs ministry called the continuing attacks on shipping "deeply worrisome and a direct result of the ongoing conflict" and reiterated its call for immediate de-escalation and a negotiated diplomatic solution.
"The targeting of commercial shipping and civilian infrastructure in the region must end," the ministry said.
Since the conflict began in February, ten Indians have died in West Asia, including three seafarers killed in attacks on merchant vessels during the early phase of hostilities, according to HT.
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