US Peace Talks With Taliban: Terrorist Group Opens Shop In Doha, Qatar, Same City Where Americans Will Hold Afghanistan Negotiations

The United States is slated to hold open peace talks with Taliban leaders in Doha, Qatar, the same city where the terrorist group opened an office several months ago.

A Taliban spokesman said the group was opening the Doha office to "reach understanding and initiate talks with countries of the world for the purpose of improving relations with them", and to support a peaceful, political solution to end the "occupation of Afghanistan," The Guardian reports.

The proposal for a Doha office has been on the table since 2011, and several senior Taliban figures have been living in Qatar for many months now, but the group had not publicly embraced plans for peace talks, The Guardian also reports.

Washington announced the peace talk plans with the Taliban on Tuesday, after the US dropped preconditions that were required for any dialogue to occur.

The talks signal a shift in the political stance of the Taliban within the 12-year-old conflict with the terrorist group, mulling over the idea of cutting ties with al-Qaida and promoting peace in Afghanistan by respecting human rights - the Taliban were frequently criticized by the United States for their treatment of women and non-Muslims.

"This is but the first step in what will be a long road," one U.S. official told Reuters. "We have long said this conflict won't be won on the battlefield, which is why we support the opening of this office."

US officials have not announced an official date for the talks and have not released information on security measures that will be taken prior to the meeting.