The Afghan President Hamid Karzai has confirmed that unofficial contacts with the Taliban have been taking place to end the insurgency. In a CNN interview, he said such contacts have been going on for quite some time. The admission comes shortly after Mr Karzai set up the High Peace Council – the body to start a dialogue with the Taliban. His comments follow growing reports of secret peace talks with the militants. Kabul's previous attempts to negotiate with the Taliban have failed, partly over their insistence that foreign troops leave the country first. Taliban fighters continue to inflict casualties on the US-led Nato forces and resist all attempts to defeat them by military means. There are nearly 150,000 foreign troops currently deployed in Afghanistan.