ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has firmly rejected allegations of its involvement in the attack on Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah and termed them as irresponsible.
"Pakistan is deeply disappointed by such allegations because they serve to vitiate the positive environment created between the two countries through constructive efforts over the past months," Foreign Office spokesperson Tasneem Aslam said in the first ever reaction to such allegations.
Regrettably, these allegations fall in the familiar pattern of certain elements in Afghanistan sparing no occasion to malign Pakistan and its security institutions and shifting the blame to others for their own security failures, the spokesperson remarked.
"We are sure that neither the Afghan people, nor the international community would be misled by these motivated allegations," the spokesperson commented.
She said Pakistan’s interests were not served by disruption of Afghan elections.
"On the contrary, a peaceful election and a smooth democratic transition would advance our interest in having a stable Afghanistan. Accordingly, we remain committed to supporting all efforts for a free and peaceful election which includes enhancing security along the Pak-Afghan border," the spokesperson said.
Earlier on Friday, Abdullah survived an assassination attempt when two blasts, including a suicide bombing, hit his campaign motorcade in Kabul ahead of next weekend's hotly contested run-off election. The explosion, however, killed 12 people.