‘We Did The Right Thing’: EAM Jaishankar On India Allowing Iran's IRIS Lavan To Dock At Kochi
External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar on Saturday said that New Delhi allowed Iranian ship, IRIS Lavan, facing technical issues, to dock at Kochi port on humanitarian grounds.
While speaking at the Raisina Dialogue 2026, the Union Minister said that India did the right thing by providing assistance as it approached the matter from a humanitarian perspective despite legal complexities
“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 said as quoted by news agency ANI.
Jaishankar further detailed the sequence of events as how the Iranian ship requested permission to enter an Indian port after facing issues.
He said India received a message from the Iranian side stating that one of their ships closest to Indian waters was experiencing problems and requested permission to enter an Indian port. He said that India granted permission on March 1 and the vessel reached Kochi a few days later.
“On the 1st March, we said you can come in and it took them a few days to sail in and then they docked in Kochi," he said, adding that several young cadets were on board the vessel and have since disembarked and been moved to a safe location nearby.
According to Jaishankar, the Iranian ships had initially set out to participate in a fleet review, but the regional situation changed dramatically due to the ongoing conflict, leaving them in a difficult position.
“When the ships had set out and when they came here, the situation was totally different. They were coming in for a fleet review and then they got in a way caught on the wrong side of events," Jaishankar said.
He added that one ship reached Sri Lanka, while another vessel, IRIS Dena, sank after being hit by US strike.
Responding to debates online, Jaishankar also pointed to the broader security realities in the Indian Ocean.
“There are a lot of social media debates going on over this. Please understand the reality of the Indian Ocean," he said, noting that foreign military presences in the region have existed for decades.
He cited the long-standing US military base at Diego Garcia and the presence of foreign forces in Djibouti, while also referring to infrastructure developments such as Sri Lanka’s Hambantota port.
“Diego Garcia has been in the Indian Ocean for the last five decades…The fact that there are foreign forces based in Djibouti happened in the early first decade of this century. Hambantota came up during this period…" he added.
His comments came after a US submarine torpedoed and sank the Iranian frigate IRIS Dena on Wednesday about 19 nautical miles off Sri Lanka’s southern port city of Galle amid escalating tensions between Tehran and Washington. Sri Lankan authorities launched a rescue operation following a distress signal and recovered at least 87 bodies, while 32 sailors were rescued.
The vessel, IRIS Dena, had been returning to Iran after participating in the Milan multilateral naval exercise hosted by India.
Sri Lanka on Thursday began offloading the Booshehr’s crew and moving them to facilities near Colombo. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said the island nation had a “humanitarian responsibility" to assist the stranded sailors.
The Dena, one of Iran’s newer Moudge-class frigates, had about 180 personnel on board and was armed with missiles, guns and torpedoes. Multiple US officials told CBS News that the vessel was struck by torpedoes fired from the attack submarine USS Charlotte, with the second torpedo hitting and sinking the ship after the first missed.
