Aaron-Matthew Lariosa – May 11, 2025 7:55 PM
The Indian Navy massed naval forces in the Northern Arabian Sea and sent a carrier battle group, surface combatants, submarines and naval aviation to keep their Pakistani adversaries in a “defensive position,” officials said this week. .
“The Indian Navy remained forward deployed in the Northern Arabian Sea in a dissuasive and deterrent posture, with full readiness and capacity to strike select targets at sea, and on land, compelling Pakistani Naval and air units to be in a defensive posture, inside harbours or very close to their coast,” reads a release from the service.
New Delhi said that its naval forces were “immediately deployed to sea with full combat readiness” three weeks ago after an organization linked to internationally-recognized terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba killed 26 tourists in Kashmir, a mountainous disputed territory that has been disputed between India and Pakistan. Indian Navy photographs from the days after the attacks depicted Visakhapatnam-class destroyers and Talwar-class frigates launching BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles. According to the service, the navy conducted these long-range precision strike drills within 96 hours of the Pahalgam attack.
Both the Indian and Pakistani navies sent out notifications for a number of competing exercises within their respective exclusive economic zones.
While the Indian Navy confirmed its forces did not directly participate in the initial round of Operation Sindoor attacks on nine Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed sites and follow-on preemptive strikes on Pakistani air defenses and air bases, the service attributed to an “escalation control mechanism” that called for coordinated “applications of force” with the Indian Army and Air Force.
Among the capabilities employed in the strikes are BrahMos cruise missiles. Originally derived from the Russian P-800 Oniks, the Indian Mach 2.8 missile can be launched by land-based launchers, naval vessels and fighter aircraft. A single missile can be carried under the SU-30MKI’s center line pylon. Videos have emerged of BrahMos boosters and remains following the strikes from Indian states bordering Pakistan.
“Along with kinetic actions by the Army and the Air Force, the overwhelming operational edge of Indian Navy at sea, contributed towards Pakistan’s urgent request for a ceasefire yesterday,” according to the Navy release.
With an increasingly modern Pakistani Navy and new threats from Chinese warships and spy ships scouring the Indian Ocean Region, New Delhi invested in its naval forces and uses them to counter old and new threats. The Indian Navy took the lead in the country’s approach to the Red Sea and anti-piracy efforts. The service’s carrier battle groups also frequently drilled with France and Italy.
A press conference from the Pakistani Armed Forces claimed that their naval forces tracked the movements of the Indian aircraft carrier INS Vikrant (R11) in the Northern Arabian Sea.
While the ceasefire has held despite reports of violations from both nations, Indian forces have reiterated their readiness to respond to any further escalation.
“The Indian Navy remains deployed at sea in a credible deterrent posture, to respond decisively to any inimical action by Pakistan, or Pakistan based terrorist,” reads the release.
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