ISLAMABAD -  The foreign ministry on Friday summoned Afghan Charge d’Affaires Abdul Nasir Yousafi and lodged a strong protest over unprovoked firing at the Chaman border. Pakistan also warned that it reserved the right to respond to “preserve its sovereignty and protect its civilians.”

The Afghan diplomat was conveyed that Pakistani authorities were undertaking the population census and this information had been shared with the Afghan government earlier, said a foreign ministry statement.

“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 Pakistan side of the border and caused damage to properties,” it said.

It added: “We urge the Afghan government to take immediate steps to bring an end to the unprovoked firing from the Afghan side. Action should also be taken against those who are responsible for this violation.”

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also strongly condemned the grave incident of firing by Afghan border police targeting personnel of the Frontier Corps and the population census team.

Terming the incident “most unfortunate”, the prime minister said the recurrence of such incidents was contrary to Pakistan's efforts for achieving peace and stability in the region.

Sharif expressed his profound grief and sorrow over the loss of precious human lives and injuries caused to the civilian and personnel of law enforcement agencies.

He said that it was the responsibility of the Afghan government to ensure that such incidents were permanently stopped.

Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakaria, speaking at a weekly media briefing here, said the violation by the Afghanistan forces took place when the census teams were undertaking population census as part of the national census exercise all over the country.

“The Afghan government was informed about the census being undertaken on our side of the border and exact coordinates of the areas were also shared with the Afghan government,” he said.

Zakaria said the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan was clearly demarcated. “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 ensure peace and tranquillity on the border,” he added.

The spokesperson urged the Afghan government to immediately stop firing against Pakistani villages.

“In case, Afghanistan does not take measures to stop its provocations, Pakistan reserves the right to fully respond with a view to protect its sovereignty and citizens,” he warned.

Asked about Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s decision not to visit Pakistan and his demand to act against the alleged perpetrators of Mazar-e-Sharif and other terrorist attacks in Afghanistan, Zakaria said the problems of Afghanistan were internal. “Externalising Afghanistan’s problems and blaming others for the continued instability in their country does not help. It would be in the interest of everyone that such accusations are avoided as they serve no purpose,” he remarked.

To a question, Zakaria said Pakistan was cognizant of the important role played by China and the United States in Afghan peace process.

He said the two countries were part of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group process, which made serious efforts to bring the Afghan government and warring factions at the negotiating table.

Asked about India trying to seek greater role in Afghanistan, Zakaria said, "We have continued to underline that India is part of the problem and not a solution."

Zakaria said India was using Afghan soil to destabilise Pakistan and spoil Pak-Afghan relations.

Questioned about the recent visits to Kabul from Pakistan, the spokesperson said this was an important effort to strengthen and institutionalise parliamentary exchanges between the two countries. Zakaria said Pakistan wanted to promote relations and friendship with Afghanistan.

“We believe a politically-negotiated settlement is the most viable option for lasting peace in Afghanistan,” he added.

The spokesperson said the Afghan government and the warring factions including the Taliban needed to reach a peace agreement to achieve that objective.

To a question that the Chinese government had begun the process of extending the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to Afghanistan, Zakaria said the CPEC was currently a bilateral undertaking between Pakistan and China.

“It is also a project for shared prosperity and common development of the region. Many countries of the region have, therefore, expressed interest in joining the CPEC,” he added.

The spokesperson said the decision to involve third countries into the CPEC would be taken jointly by Pakistan and China.

The decision regarding involvement of Afghanistan or any other country of the region, he said, would be taken after the finalisation of the guidelines, to be formulated.

About the agreement between Hizb-e-Islami and the Afghan government, the spokesperson said: “We had welcomed that and had said that it should be an example for the other warring factions to come to negotiating table.”