According to Foreign Office Spokesperson Nafees Zakria, the Afghan Charge d'Affaires was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to lodge Pakistan's strong protest over the unprovoked firing by the Afghan forces in Chaman area, which has resulted in the martyrdom of several Pakistani citizens and injuries a number of people, including women and children.
"The Afghan Charge d'Affaires was conveyed that Pakistani authorities were undertaking the population census and this information had been shared with Afghan government earlier," he said, adding the unprovoked firing from the Afghan side not only led to the loss of precious lives, but has also disrupted the census in areas on the Pakistani side of the border and caused damage to properties.
He said the Afghan government was urged to take immediate steps to bring to an end the unprovoked firing from the Afghan side and action should also be taken against those who are responsible for this violation. Responding to a question in his weekly media briefing, the spokesperson expressed Pakistan's serious concern over the continued firing from the Afghan forces in the area near Chaman since early hours of Thursday morning. "We would like to urge the Afghan government to immediately stop firing against Pakistani villages. In case, Afghanistan does not take measures to stop its provocation's, Pakistan reserves the right to fully respond with a view to protect its sovereignty and citizens," he warned.
He said the violation was taking place at a time when the teams were undertaking population census in that area as part of the national census exercise all over the country. He said the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan is clearly demarcated and all the locations are authenticated by maps available with the two governments. "Pakistan is undertaking census in its own areas, which is our sovereign right. The Afghan side should immediately withdraw those elements who are perpetrating these hostilities with a view to ensuring peace and tranquility on the border," he said.
Commenting on Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's refusal to visit Pakistan till Islamabad takes action against the perpetrators of Mazar-e-Sharif and other terrorist attacks in Afghanistan, Zakria said that Pakistan has continued to emphasise that the problems of Afghanistan are internal. "Externalising Afghanistan's problems and blaming others for the continued instability in the country does not help. It would be in the interest of everyone that such accusations are avoided as they serve no purpose," he added.
To another question about the Quadrilateral Co-ordination Group (QCG) on Afghanistan, he said that Pakistan is cognisant of the important role played by the US and China in Afghanistan. He said that the QCG that involves both the US and China along with Afghanistan and Pakistan made serious efforts for bringing Afghan government and the Taliban to Afghan-owned and Afghan-led peace talks.
However on India's role, he said that Pakistan has continued to underline that 'India is part of the problem and not solution.' "India is also using Afghan soil for its nefarious designs to destabilise Pakistan and spoil Pakistan-Afghan relations," he added.
He further said that for lasting peace and stability in Afghanistan the politically negotiated settlement is the most viable option. "We believe that both the parties ie Afghan government and the Taliban should consider reaching a peaceful settlement through an Afghan-owned and Afghan-led peace process," he added.
To another query, he said that the peace agreement between Hekmatyar's Hizb-e-Islami and the Afghan government should be an example for the other warring factions to come to negotiating table. To the reports that China has begun process of extending the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to Afghanistan, he said that CPEC is currently a bilateral undertaking between Pakistan and China, adding it is also a project for shared prosperity and common development of the region.
He said that many countries of the region have expressed interest in joining the CPEC and the decision to involve third countries into the CPEC will be taken jointly by Pakistan and China. The decision regarding involvement of Afghanistan or any other country of the region will be taken after the finalisation of the guidelines, to be formulated, he added.
Responding to another question about the "South Asia Satellite" to be launched by India, he recalled that during the 18th SAARC Summit, India offered to 'gift' a satellite to SAARC member states, to be named as the so-called "SAARC Satellite". Subsequently, however, India made it clear that it would build, launch and operate the satellite solely. However, its registration with International Telecommunication Union (ITU) will be done as a "SAARC Satellite," he added.
He said that Pakistan, which has its own space programme at an advanced level, was ready to share its expertise and technological know-how and was keen to participate in the project. However, as India was not willing to develop the project on a collaborative basis, it was not possible for Pakistan to support it as a regional project under the umbrella of SAARC, he added. He said that the satellite was then renamed as "South Asian Satellite" as the project was taken out of the SAARC ambit.
On Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif's recent visit, he said the discussions during his visit focused on maintaining the momentum of high-level exchanges between the two countries. Iran and Pakistan have recently signed a Banking Payment Arrangement (BPA), which would pave the way for increasing bilateral trade, he said, adding the Joint Economic Commission was also held recently to promote economic co-operation.
He said that the two countries have an institutionalised mechanism, namely Joint Border Commission (JBC), which reviews all matters pertaining to border issues, adding the two sides meet regularly to discuss ways of further enhancing border management and co-operation. "The relationship between Iran and Pakistan is cordial. We are neighbours and our border is of peace and friendship. The JBC is in place to ensure effective border management and address all concerns of both sides that arise from time to time," he said.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2017