Taliban says ready to talk

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- A spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban told the BBC the militants operating in the nation's troubled northwest region are willing to talk with the government.

The Pakistani army has been waging a prolonged campaign to regain control of the tribal region.

The BBC reported the militants, who say they believe they are negotiating from a position of strength, are ready to have unconditional talks if the military stopped its operations against them, currently concentrated in the scene Swat Valley and the Bajaur tribal region.

"We are willing to negotiate with the government without any conditions," Taliban spokesman Maulvi Omar was quoted as telling the BBC's Urdu language service. "We are also willing to lay down our arms, once the military ceases operations against us."

The report said Pakistan has offered to talk to the militants after they disarm but also has noted no foreigners will be allowed to operate from its region.

The militants are suspected of using the Pakistani territory to launch attacks across the border into Afghanistan against U.S.-led NATO forces.

Maulvi Omar was quoted as saying the local Taliban does not want foreign militants in the region and promised to help remove them.