Iranian ship sunk by US had been part of international exercise in which US participated

[muriel_volestrangler]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ships_present_at_International_Fleet_Review_2026

The USA withdrew its ship that had been scheduled to take part, but still sent a patrol aircraft.

India will field a formidable fleet of 45 ships, led by the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant (R11). Indian Navy Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan reported there had been confirmation of attendance from 55 nations, some of them on foot and some attending with naval aircraft. As at February 18, warships from 17 nations had been spotted in the harbor. Germany is participating with a recently-delivered Boeing Poseidon P-8A anti-submarine warfare aircraft.

The United States Navy was to have presented Arleigh Burke Class guided-missile destroyer USS Pinckney (DDG-91), whose arrival was cancelled at the last minute for undisclosed operational reasons. It would have been embarrassing for the Indian hosts to have had Pinckney moored alongside IRINS Dena, should war have broken out with Iran during the period of the fleet review.

The Iranian Navy Moudge-class frigate IRINS Dena (F74) arrived in Visak on February 16, even though it has been confirmed that the Indian Coast Guard is detaining three Iran-associated dark fleet tankers seized last week off Mumbai.

https://maritime-executive.com/article/india-s-fleet-review-begins-with-iran-present-but-not-the-u-s-navy

Held under the theme �Camaraderie, Cooperation, Collaboration�, MILAN 2026 witnessed participation on an unprecedented scale, comprising 42 ships and submarines and, 29 aircraft. These also included 18 ships from the participating Friendly Foreign Countries.

Further, apart from integral helicopters onboard the Friendly Foreign Country ships, maritime patrol aircraft from France, Germany and USA also participated.

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2232853®=3&lang=1

The US strike on an Iranian warship, which killed more than 80 crew members, is illegal, according to Wes Bryant, a former U.S. Air Force Special Operations targeting expert and former chief of civilian harm assessments at the Pentagon.

The Iris Dena, a 1.5 ton warship bearing Iranian missiles, was reportedly transiting home after participating in training exercises hosted by the Indian navy at the time of the strike, according to Indian press. India had convened naval assets from 74 countries for a March exercise.

�Was that warship actively posing a threat or participating in hostiles?� asked Bryant. �You cannot say that this warship was an imminent threat to anyone. By targeting it, is the Trump administration saying that the imminent threat is all of Iran�s government and military?�
...
Bigger picture, lawyers have said that the US operations against Iran are patently illegal, and several have raised concerns about the broader conflict that US aggression has kicked off.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/mar/04/iran-war-live-updates-us-israel-latest-news-strait-of-hormuz-middle-east-crisis?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-69a866888f08b61232069bab#block-69a866888f08b61232069bab

(The "a March exercise" from The Guardian seems a mistake - the exercises were clearly in February. And "1.5 ton" is clearly wrong.)