France's defense minister on Sunday backed U.S. efforts to open peace talks with the Taliban, saying a proposed Taliban liaison office outside Afghanistan would provide a venue for those within the Afghani militant movement who are willing to explain their positions, AP reported. The idea of opening a Taliban political office in Doha, the capital of Qatar, has become the central element of efforts to draw the insurgent movement into peace talks and end more than a decade of war. Speaking at the end of a brief visit to French troops, Gerard Longuet said he had asked Afghan President Hamid Karzai about the idea. Karzai "explained the reasons ... for Doha as a venue for meetings where the Taliban who wish to do so can express themselves and meet with Afghans or members of the coalition who wish to talk to them," Longuet said. "It seems that there is a part among the forces fighting against the (government), there is a will to explain themselves, to be understood. We should never close that door." Earlier this week, a senior U.S. official told The Associated Press that Washington plans to continue a series of secret meetings with Taliban representatives in Europe and the Gulf region next year. The U.S. outreach this year had progressed to the point that there was active discussion of two steps the Taliban seeks as precursors to negotiations, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue.
