India urges caution for ships entering Black Sea
Smoke rises from the grain carrier Golden Leo under the Guinea-Bissau flag after Russian missile strike in the Black Sea close to Odesa, Ukraine, on Jul 19, 2026. (Photo: AP/Michael Shtekel)
Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
NEW DELHI: India issued a security warning on Thursday (Jul 23) for ships venturing into the Black Sea that are locally flagged or employ its seafarers.
The advisory follows a Russian attack Sunday on a cargo ship leaving Ukraine’s port of Odesa that killed four Indian nationals.
The “highest degree of caution” should be exercised while operating in the Black Sea, India’s Directorate General of Maritime Administration said.
“Voyage-specific security risk assessments” should be undertaken before entering the region, it said.
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
The maritime authority said there had been 10 attacks in the region since April this year involving Indian seafarers aboard foreign-flagged ships.
They included Sunday’s fatal attack on the MV Golden Leo, which New Delhi protested by calling in Russia’s top envoy to convey its “unequivocal condemnation”.
Others included attacks on foreign-flagged tankers MT Asia, MT Louise-1 and MT Nelsa near Novorossiysk that resulted in damage to vessels and forced Indian seafarers to leave the ships.
The security advisory comes a week after the Indian maritime authority asked local and foreign shipowners not to deploy Indian seafarers on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
India is one of the largest contributors of sailors to merchant shipping worldwide, with more than 320,000 active seafarers in 2025, according to the country’s shipping ministry.
Source: AFP/ec
Sign up for our newsletters
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
About The Author
