Afghan President Hamid Karzai confirms the U.S. is involved in peace talks with the Taliban. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates had said he was open to talks with the Taliban by the end of the year, but the Taliban had said they refused to negotiate with anyone but the Afghan government, and even then only when coalition forces had left. In a diplomatic overture to the Taliban, the United Nations voted Friday to treat its sanctions of al Qaeda and the Taliban separately.
