India Summons Russian Envoy Over Black Sea Strike that Killed Four Indians

New Delhi: India on Tuesday (July 21) summoned Russia's chargé d'affaires in New Delhi to convey its "grave concerns" and "unequivocal condemnation" over the attack on the commercial vessel MV Golden Leo off Ukraine's Black Sea coast that killed four Indian seafarers, a day after the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) publicly condemned the strike.

Russian embassy’s chargé d'affaires Vladimir Ladanov was called to the MEA, where officials said the July 19 attack had "resulted in the tragic loss of four Indian lives" and "undermine[d] the safety, security and stability of international maritime commerce."

"The Russian Chargé d'Affaires was requested to convey India's strong concerns to his authorities that the targeting of commercial shipping and the resulting loss of innocent civilian lives are unacceptable and must be avoided," the MEA said in a statement.

The diplomatic démarche came a day after India condemned the attack, though without identifying the state responsible for the attack. Ukraine's Navy has accused Russian forces of carrying out the strike, saying the Guinea-Bissau-flagged bulk carrier was hit by three Kh-59/Kh-69 cruise missiles shortly after leaving the Black Sea port of Odesa with a cargo of grain. 

Russia's defence ministry, meanwhile, said it had struck two bulk carriers in Odesa port that it claimed were carrying military cargo.

According to Ukrainian authorities, the attack killed four Indian crew members along with five other crew members and a Ukrainian maritime pilot. Another Indian national was critically injured, while eight people were rescued.

The Golden Leo attack is the first incident in which Indian merchant seafarers have been killed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It is also the second conflict this year in which Indian sailors have died, after at least 13 Indian seafarers were killed in attacks on commercial vessels during the US-Iran conflict around the Strait of Hormuz.

Tuesday's summons also makes Russia the third foreign mission to be called in by India this year over attacks on commercial vessels that killed Indian merchant seafarers.

New Delhi had twice summoned the US embassy's chargé d'affaires over repeated US attacks on commercial vessels carrying Indian mariners in the Gulf of Oman, including the strike on MT Settebello in which three Indian sailors were killed. 

It had also summoned Iran's ambassador earlier this year and, last week, the Iranian embassy's deputy chief of mission after Iranian attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz killed another Indian mariner and injured several others.

According to Ukraine's Navy, the missiles struck the vessel's starboard-side superstructure, triggering a fire. While Ukrainian authorities identified the ship as Turkish-owned, Reuters, citing LSEG shipping data, reported that it was owned by Mumbai-based Ocean Grace Shipping Ltd.

The deaths also add to the toll of Indian nationals killed in the Ukraine war. Before the Golden Leo attack, the conflict had claimed the life of Indian medical student Naveen Shekharappa Gyanagoudar, who was killed in shelling in Kharkiv in March 2022.

The Union government has also informed the Supreme Court that 49 Indian nationals recruited into the Russian military after allegedly being lured with promises of support jobs have died in the conflict.

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