Taliban confirms possible office in Qatar Tuesday, 03 January 2012 14:08

KABUL:The Taliban on Tuesday confirmed they had come to an "initial agreement" to open a political office overseas as part of peace talks with the United States.

In a statement published on their purported website "Voice of Jihad", the Taliban said they had held "preliminary talks with relevant sides including Qatar" to open an office outside Afghanistan.

"We're now prepared, while having a strong presence inside (Afghanistan) to have a political office outside (Afghanistan) for negotiations," the statement said, reiterating the stance that all foreign troops must leave to end the war.

The Taliban said one of their demands was for a prisoner exchange to include the release of inmates from Cuba's US-run detention facility Guantanamo Bay. (AFP)