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    January 12, 2012

Taliban Ready for Afghan Peace Talks

   VOA News

   The Taliban says its political wing is ready to enter peace talks to
   end the war in Afghanistan.
   In an emailed statement Thursday, the group said it has increased its
   efforts to bring about peace in the troubled nation. But it also
   reiterated its opposition to the current Afghan constitution, and it
   referred to the government led by President Hamid Karzai as a "stooge"
   administration.
   The comments come as a senior U.S. diplomat, Marc Grossman, prepares to
   lead a delegation to the country next week in hopes of getting approval
   from President Karzai for peace negotiations with the Taliban.
   Earlier this month, the Afghan Taliban said it has reached a
   preliminary agreement to open a political office in the Gulf state of
   Qatar, in a move that could help facilitate the talks.
   Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement that the
   Taliban is asking for the release of prisoners held at the U.S.-run
   Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba.
   U.S. officials have recently been quoted as saying that Washington is
   open to negotiating a peace agreement with the Taliban, and that a
   possible deal could include the transfer of Taliban prisoners.
   In December, Vice President Joe Biden said the Afghan Taliban are not
   America's enemies, and that the insurgent group did not represent a
   threat to the U.S. unless it continued to harbor al-Qaida terrorists.
   U.S.-led forces ousted Afghanistan's Taliban government following the
   September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States. Those
   attacks were carried out by al-Qaida, which had training camps in
   Afghanistan.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.