The Pakistan government has been boasting about the prowess of the country's navy after it claimed on Tuesday to have thwarted a bid by an Indian submarine to enter its waters.
The Pakistan military announced a maritime patrol aircraft detected the Indian submarine on October 16. It shared video footage showing the silhouette of a submarine.
Mooed W. Yusuf, Pakistan's National Security Adviser, tweeted late on Tuesday "Pakistan’s highly professional & vigilant navy interdicted an Indian submarine trying to enter our waters surreptitiously, not the first such incident in recent years. These actions are belligerent & reflect the militaristic approach of the Indian govt."
Yusuf added "Make no mistake, today’s India is a live threat to peace and stability in the region. We have repeatedly demonstrated that if our resolve is tested, any aggression will recieve a befitting response."
However, Yusuf's claim did not go uncontested.
Retired admiral Arun Prakash, who was chief of the Indian Navy from 2005 to 2006, referred to the footage to show the submarine had its schnorkel up and periscope showing. A schnorkel (or snorkel) is a device used by submarines to suck in atmospheric oxygen to operate their diesel engines while underwater. This would allow the submarine to recharge its electric batteries, its main form of underwater propulsion. A schnorkel is never deployed when a submarine wants to stay hidden as it can be spotted visually by aircraft or ships or picked up by magnetic anomaly detectors and radars.
Prakash responded to Yusuf by tweeting "Hardly ‘surreptitiously!!” A submarine with its schnorkel up & periscope showing is declaring its presence. It can be picked up by radar or even visually, from miles; no great 'vigilance' or 'professionalism' reqd here."
People familiar with maritime operations told PTI that the location of the submarine—as per details that came out—was 150 nautical miles from Karachi port, which is beyond the limit of Pakistani waters.
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Naval News, a defence website, reported the incident appeared to have happened inside Pakistan exclusive economic zone. Naval News pointed out "It is legal for the Indian Navy submarine to be operating there, even conducting intelligence operations."
An Indian Navy source told The Times of India the authenticity of the Pakistani video was in question. "Territorial waters extend to just 12 nautical miles from the coast. It could be any country’s submarine in the video. There is a question mark on the authenticity of the video itself. Moreover, Pakistan has made such dubious claims in the past also," the source told The Times of India.
