The American military strikes on MT Marivex, MT Settebello, and MT Jalveer near Oman over the last two days, which were all manned by Indian seafarers, has raised serious questions about the Modi government’s handling of India’s ties with the United States (US). The US has struck three ships in the Gulf this week, all with Indian crew on board.These targeted actions by the US armed forces in the Gulf of Oman mark the only instance in independent India’s history where the US military has killed Indians. There has not been a word of regret by the US military or the Trump administration over these killings, as it continues to target commercial ships with Indian sailors despite New Delhi’s protests.However, neither Modi nor any senior member of the Union Cabinet has uttered a single word of direct condemnation against the US for the killings of Indian nationals. The official MEA statement carefully avoided naming the perpetrator of the attack entirely, genericising the lethal assault as “a direct result of the ongoing conflict in the region.”Outside of a technical condolence message from the Shipping Minister regarding the recovery of the bodies, the country’s political leadership has maintained a calculated, submissive silence.While the bodies of Indian seafarers were being recovered from the waters off Sohar, a glaring contrast emerged in New Delhi’s political communication. US President Donald Trump took to social media to congratulate PM Narendra Modi on achieving a milestone of completing 12 years in office. Modi promptly found the time to publicly engage with and thank Trump for his warm wishes.PM Modi’s continued silence on these US military attacks violates the constitutional responsibility to defend Indian lives. Article 52 of the Constitution establishes the President as defender of the nation, but the political executive, led by Modi, holds operational responsibility for protecting citizens abroad. Silence when US forces kill innocent Indians in international waters is abdication of his constitutional duty as the prime minister.Besides bringing into question Modi’s boasts of providing a strong leadership, these attacks also underscore the betrayal of the principle of strategic sovereignty championed by India. It demands India to act independently when its citizens are harmed, regardless of partnership status. US is a strategic partner, but when a strategic partner’s military kills your citizens, strategic sovereignty requires public condemnation. New Delhi’s failure to do so undermines India’s claim to strategic autonomy.Perhaps first time in history that Hellfire missiles were used on Indian civilians. This quad partner is amazing. https://t.co/forXHXLO9f— Kallol Bhattacherjee (@janusmyth) June 11, 2026The Modi government has in fact tried to indirectly justify the US action by continually emphasising that “two of the vessels are sanctioned ship, one of them non-compliant ship”. To evade its political responsibility and domestic accountability, the government has also argued on legal technicalities that the MT Marivex, MT Settebello, and MT Jalveer were foreign-flagged vessels (flying flags of Palau or Guinea-Bissau) and not Indian-owned.No regret from CENTCOM has earned sharp rebuke from some former foreign service officers.Why are we indirectly justifying the US action by referring to OFAC and using terms like non- compliance?These are illegal actions even if the ships are not Indian- flagged.Our concern is that Indian seamen have been killed and no regret has been expressed by CENTCOM.If… https://t.co/8BF1gMG3Gm— Kanwal Sibal (@KanwalSibal) June 11, 2026The story so farOn Wednesday, the Ministry of External Affairs issued a terse official statement regarding the commercial vessel MT Settebello off the coast of Oman. The statement read: “We condemn the attack on the commercial vessel Settebello off the coast of Oman, earlier today. Of the 24 Indian crew onboard, 21 Indians have been rescued thus far and 03 Indians are reportedly missing.” On Thursday, Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal confirmed that the three missing Indian seafarers were dead, their bodies recovered after a precision missile strike by the US military disabled the vessel’s engine room.This lethal strike on the MT Settebello followed an attack just 24 hours prior on another vessel, the MT Marivex, which also carried a 24-member Indian crew. After the attack on MT Marivex on Monday, official sources said that it wasn’t an “Indian-flagged ship”, and thus the Modi government wouldn’t act. The government had even desisted from naming the US as the perpetrator of the attack.In response to the fatal attack on Tuesday, the MEA took the diplomatic step of summoning the US Chargé d’Affaires in New Delhi, Jason Meeks. Additional Secretary (Americas) Nagaraj Naidu formally registered India’s protest and conveyed anxiety over the safety of Indian nationals. However, it didn’t make a difference to the US which again targeted MT Jalveer on Thursday. The Modi government said the 20 crew members, all Indians, on the MT Jalveer were safe after the US military strike off Oman.