Afghanistan's government on Tuesday denied asking the United Nations to remove as many as 50 Taliban members from a U.N. blacklist, but said consideration was being given to a new request.

President Hamid Karzai's office said U.S. newspaper reports Afghanistan would ask for 30 to 50 names be delisted to remove Taliban who has not link to fighters were "inaccurate".

"The government of Afghanistan has not submitted any list of 50 people," Karzai's spokesman Waheed Omer told journalists.

Karzai's office five years ago submitted 20 names to the United Nation Security Council to strike from a blacklist of 137 names to help in reconciliation talks with insurgents, Omer said.

Reuters

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