UK and al-Qaeda should talk

Jonathan Powell
Sat, 15 Mar 2008 06:26:04 presstv

A close aid to former British premier Tony Blair says the government should make preparations to talk to al-Qaeda and the Taliban.
Jonathan Powell told the British daily the Guardian that the Northern Ireland peace deal showed that talking to terror groups could ultimately work, BBC's website reported.
Powell added that if he was still working at Number 10 Downing Street, he would talk to the Hamas as well.
Powell, was Blair's chief of staff, as well as one of the key negotiators for the government in reaching a settlement in Northern Ireland.
In an interview with the Guardian, he said that talks with al-Qaeda might seem pointless at present, but ultimately a political solution would need to be developed alongside a security response.
He said, "There's nothing to say to al-Qaeda and they've got nothing to say to us at the moment, but at some stage you're going to have to come to a political solution as well as a security solution. And that means you need the ability to talk."
The Foreign Office however says that the government will not talk to any group actively promoting its aims through violence.

SM/HAR