Subrahmanyam Jishankar, India's Foreign Minister, said that India allowed an Iranian warship docking as a 'humanitarian gesture' on Saturday, following the U.S. sinking of another Iranian navy ship off neighbouring Sri Lanka.

An Indian government source said that the Lavan docked at India's southernmost port of?Kochi, on the same day as the U.S. sub struck the Iranian navy frigate Dena. This was in response to an urgent request by Tehran.

U.S. president Donald Trump said that destroying the Iranian Navy was one of the goals of the war against the Islamic Republic launched by him and Israel a week earlier.

According to the U.S., The Lavan is an amphibious landing vessel. Naval Institute's news website - along with two other ships - "were coming in for a fleet?review and they were, in a sense, caught on the wrong?side of the events," Jaishankar said at the annual Raisina Dialogue.

He said, "I believe we approached it more from the perspective of humanity than the legal aspects." "I believe we did the right things."

The U.S. attack against the Dena, which took place 19 nautical miles from the coast of Sri Lanka and outside its maritime boundaries, resulted in at least 87 deaths.

The source said late Friday that India received the docking requests for the Lavan the day after the Iran War began on February 28. They added that the request was urgent because the vessel had "developed 'technical problems".

The source who requested anonymity citing confidentiality said that the 183 crew members were accommodated in naval facilities at Kochi.

According to the website of the exercise and Sri Lankan officials, Dena was returning from a naval drill organised by India.

Sri Lankan authorities announced on Friday that they were escorting Iranian naval ship Booshehr into a harbour along the east coast, and moving the majority of its crew to an army camp near Colombo. (Reporting and writing by Sivaram V, Nidhi verma, Editing by William Mallard).

(source: Reuters)