ISLAMABAD

Pakistan on Thursday expressed “surprise” over the Chinese ambassador’s statement on security issues in the South Asian country.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said the statement by Ambassador Jiang Zaidong “does not reflect Islamabad and Beijing diplomatic tradition.”

“Islamabad is fully aware of Beijing's concern over attacks on Chinese nationals and the Pakistani government has shared the investigation into the attacks with China,” Baloch told a news conference in Islamabad.

On Wednesday, Jiang said such attacks were “unacceptable” for Beijing, news website Matrix Media reported.

Baloch called the Chinese envoy's response "surprising."

Earlier this month, at least three people, including two Chinese nationals, were killed and 17 others injured in a suicide attack near Jinnah International Airport in Karachi.

In March, a suicide bomber killed at least five Chinese nationals in the Shangla district of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, who were working on the Dasu Hydropower Project in the remote Kohistan district.

On Oct. 16, Chinese Premier Li Qiang held talks with his Pakistani counterpart Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad, underscoring the need and urgency to “jointly” create a safe environment for cooperation between the two countries.

The public display of displeasure by the two sides is a rare development in the fraternal ties between the two neighbors.

China and Pakistan boast of “iron brother” relations and have maintained close cooperation over decades.