Pakistan's anti-submarine unit claims to have intercepted and tracked a Scorpene-class submarine belonging to the Indian Navy as New Delhi attempted to deploy it near Pakistani waters on 1 March.
"Given the prevailing security environment and ongoing Pakistan Navy Exercise SEASPARK-22, the possibility of an Indian unit lurking within Pakistan's maritime zone for reconnaissance and information-gathering on exercise was anticipated," Major-General Babar Iftikhar, director-general of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said in a statement on Thursday.
The armed forces spokesman said the Pakistan Navy had enforced strict monitoring as it anticipated the "ulterior motives" of the Indian Navy during ongoing naval exercises.
"The recent incident, being the fourth detection in [the] past five years is [a] reflection of the Pakistan Navy's competence and resolve to defend Pakistan's maritime frontiers," Iftikhar added.
The Indian Navy has issued no official comment as yet.
The Scorpene-class submarine is part of the Indian Navy's $3.39 billion Project-75 whereby six submarines are being made at India's Mazagon Dock Limited facility in Mumbai with the technical support of French naval shipbuilding firm Naval Group, previously known as DCNS.
The Indian Navy says that the rebuilt Scorpene-class submarine has superior stealth features such as advanced acoustic absorption techniques, low radiated noise levels and hydro-dynamically optimised shape thanks to state-of-the-art technology.
A previously reported incident occurred in October 2021, and the Pakistan Navy said another such effort took place in March 2019 at the height of the border tensions. However, the Indian Navy has rejected such claims every time.
The Pakistan Navy has been expanding its fleet with the help of China, and Beijing is slated to supply it with eight modified Yuan-class submarine by 2027.