Indian External Affairs Minister Subramaniam Jaishankar expressed to his US counterpart Marco Rubio New Delhi's protest over the killing of three Indian sailors on board an oil tanker in a US attack off the coast of Oman on June 10.

In a post on the X platform on Saturday, June 13, Jaishankar said that he had a phone call with his US counterpart, during which he reiterated India's strong protest against the attack that killed three Indian sailors, stressing that "such deadly attacks against merchant ships are not legitimate."

On Friday, India summoned the Chargé d'Affaires of Washington in New Delhi, Jason Meeks, to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and handed him a note of protest over the incident, with official sources saying that the Indian Foreign Ministry summoned the US Chargé d'Affaires for the second time this week and handed him a note of protest related to attacks on ships off the coast of Oman.

CENTCOM justifies targeting tanker

The incident dates back to June 9, when the oil tanker M/T Settebello was hit by a precision strike on the engine room, causing a fire and killing three Indian crew members, while 21 others were rescued.

U.S. Central Command justified the attack by saying the ship refused to comply with warnings and was trying, according to its account, to break the blockade and transport sanctioned Iranian oil.

In one week, U.S. forces disabled three other tankers carrying Indian crews in the Gulf of Oman, including the Marifix on June 8, the Citipelo on June 9, and Galvere on June 11, raising diplomatic tensions between New Delhi and Washington.

In a direct response, India's Ministry of External Affairs summoned the US Chargé d'Affaires in New Delhi twice in a few days, and submitted strongly worded protest memoranda, stressing that the protection of Indian seafarers is a top priority, and the issue is particularly sensitive as India is one of the world's largest exporters of marine labor, with Indian seafarers making up about 15% of the international shipping workforce.